Your Dream, My Nightmare
by Jewel1001
Summary: If he'd known that this could happen, he'd never have let it. He is the strong one. But what will happen when his enemies find out about his condition and his weaknesses?  Warning: MPreg.
1. Prologue  Mistakes

Hazeru - Hi! This is my very first Xiaolin Showdown story.

Hera - As a warning: this story contains JackxChase (Chack) and MPreg.

Hazeru - If you do not like either, then please don't read this.

Hera - Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Prologue

Mistakes

If he'd known this was possible he'd never have let it happen.

Chase Young was aware that, as a dragon, he possessed qualities and abilities that no other person on the planet had. He was stronger than most and his martial arts skills far exceeded the norm. He was different to most people not only physically - he could change into a giant lizard, for God's sake - but also emotionally. Usually, he didn't show that emotion - it wasn't that he didn't have the feelings everyone else displayed, it was just that he liked to keep up his reputation.

He had never been impressed by his own taste in lovers, which was why he had never told a soul - had made his beloved swear on his own life to never tell a soul - that he was secretly dating Jack Spicer, evil boy genius. Not that he was a genius, and his version of 'evil' was quite different to the likes of Chase Young himself, or Chase's enemy, Hannibal Bean, or even Wuya.

Chase had been with Jack - secretly, never in public, always careful not be seen - for over a year now. In the public eye, they were enemies, united only by being on the side of evil and by their quests for the shen gong wu - and also by the fact that neither trusted Wuya or Hannibal, who had teamed up together during the Heylin Eclipse years ago and had never separated since.

But behind closed doors - at Chase's palace, since Jack's place was too easily intercepted and spied on - it was all different for the two. Only Chase's jungle cats would ever know what went on between the two lovers, and even they didn't get to see what happened when the two retired to the bedroom for the night.

Now, it was only natural, given Jack's somewhat feminine auras, that he was easily dominated, and for the most part, Chase played on it. In both kisses and in their nightly activities, Chase took over Jack and the other could do little to nothing about it, although he couldn't say he didn't try - not that he really minded, seeing as Chase was both his love and his evil idol.

The rule was this: Chase was the dominant one.

But isn't there an exception to every rule?

That exception had, for these two lovers, come eight months ago, on Jack's birthday. The pale skinned, slightly feminine boy had been ecstatic about his birthday and looked forward to having a private celebration with Chase at the dragon's lair. His plans were going perfectly until Jack realised the obvious - with Hannibal and Wuya plotting and the Xiaolin monks fighting them for the revealing shen gong wu, Chase Young had completely forgotten about his young lover's birthday.

His forgetfulness had resulted in sixty minutes of screaming, sulking and crying coming from behind the closed bedroom door at his own home - Jack had refused to come out, whimpering about not being loved. Chase had found it all very annoying and he certainly wasn't one to come out with a dramatically romantic speech about how sorry he was, so he had had to improvise.

That 'improvising' was what had started this whole big mess. If he had never gone through with it, he would not be in his present condition.

/

Chase had let Jack take his turn in being the dominant one in the bedroom, just that once. He had assured the red haired male that it would be only once, never again, and it was only because he felt somewhat guilty that he was letting him do it at all - but he had. And after those minutes were over, Chase had gotten up and headed for the shower, because letting Jack be on top had made him feel both weak and unclean. He was so used to being the dominant one - it was the way it damn well should be. Never again would he let the other have that kind of power over him.

Jack being more than satisfied with his birthday present - secretly hoping Chase would never remember his birthday again - their lives had returned to normal. Jack built his robots, Chase spied on Hannibal, they fought Xiaolin Showdowns with the monks. They pretended to hate each other during the day and then made love at night. It sounded almost complicated, but it was only routine.

And like every routine, it had to be broken sometime or another.

It had all fallen apart when Chase had began feeling very sick. He rarely got sick - the last time he'd felt really weak had been during the Heylin Eclipse - and so was a bit concerned, but being him, he hadn't let it interfere in his daily lifestyle. Not even when the sickness kept him up at night and made him suffer fevers did he allow it to really bother him.

But then he began noticing he changes in himself. It took almost three full months, but inevitably, it had happened. He had begun to put on weight, but only in the stomach area. That surprised him greatly - he always took great care of his body, all areas of it, and no matter what he did, the bump that had formed on his stomach would not be toned. Eventually, he had given into the pleas - mainly because they were so loud and whiny and annoying - of Jack Spicer, and done various basic health tests on himself. He wouldn't go, of course, to a doctor - a dragon going to the doctor was just plain stupid.

And through all those tests, Chase confirmed nought but the fact that he was a perfectly healthy man. Oh, that and he had another perfectly healthy person inside him.

He had gotten Jack's equipment in order to get a proper view of the 'problem', convinced that he'd made a mistake, several, somewhere. But the results were consistent.

Chase Young was carrying a child.

How was a mystery to him but he could put it down only to his dragon genes. Could a male dragon reproduce? He didn't know - there was nobody like himself that he could make a comparison to. And so, he was entirely on his own, left to wonder how and why it had happened.

/

Since that fateful, horrible day when he had discovered the truth, five months had gone by. For the last four he had not taken part in any fights or showdowns. For the last three he had not even left his home.

He felt lazy, fat, useless and weakened. And it sickened him.

There was no speaking to the child within him, no placing his hand on his stomach to feel the vicious kicks of the unborn baby, no smiling at his situation.

Instead, he would try to train as he usually did and become annoyed that his agility was nothing like as good as it had been, get pissed off because he couldn't throw a punch the same way he used to, get irritated over the fact that he no longer fit into his armour and was reduced to wearing loose, humiliating clothes. Oversized shirts were comfortable but if anyone was to see them, they would royally screw up his self image.

Chase Young had invited Jack to stay with him for the duration of the pregnancy, if only to have someone else to talk to - he resented being seen in his present condition, and thus had closed off most contacts with the outside world. He wasn't concerned any more about people finding out he and Spicer were together - why should he worry about that now? He was carrying a baby - that had to be the most humiliating thing he could ever do. What was a relationship when you could laugh at the pregnant male? The bitter thought of Hannibal and Wuya laughing at him, if they ever found out, irritated the dragon at no end.

Jack had been sworn to secrecy to tell nobody about his lover's condition - Chase's reputation was hugely at stake. And although there was a lot of talk - mostly from Hannibal Bean - about the sudden disappearance of Chase Young, Jack didn't say anything. Indeed, he only pretended that Chase had left and that he, Jack Spicer, had taken over his home.

Not having any interest whatsoever in Jack, Hannibal and Wuya had never stopped by for a visit. They had already taken the shen gong wu that Chase had possessed and Jack was, to be frank, inadequate at winning showdowns consistently. Hannibal and Wuya were focussing on their true threats: the Xiaolin monks, led by Raimundo.

And so Chase was left in his home on his own - Jack being out trying to obtain some newly revealed shen gong wu - with nobody but his jungle cats for company.

He didn't count the 'thing' growing inside him.

Hazeru - What will happen if Hannibal Bean and Wuya find out? What if the Xiaolin find out?

Hera - Please read and review. No flames.


	2. Chapter 1  Evil Boy Genius Plotting Evi

Hazeru - Here's another chapter.

Hera - Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Chapter 1

Evil Boy Genius Plotting Evil

"Honey, I'm home!" came the cheery greeting.

The door to the lair of Chase Young flew shut as the person entering - as familiar by now as the master - walked over to one of the jungle cats that was lounging on the stone floor.

"Hey, where's Chase?" he asked.

Without a change of expression, the jungle cat - a male tiger, whose name Jack didn't know - tilted his head in the general direction that his master was in, and then placed his head on his paws to signify that he was resting.

The jungle cats were all under orders to not harm the cowardly boy genius, but that didn't mean they weren't somewhat irritated by his now constant presence. Ever since their master had begun to show that he was with child, the red haired evil doer had moved in - they wondered individually if he was ever actually going to leave again.

Taking the advice of the tiger, Jack Spicer headed down the hallway, hiding his prize behind his back. The shen gong wu that had revealed itself - the Herb Of Grace - was the first wu he had won honestly in months. Whoever possessed the Herb Of Grace - which, in reality, mainly resembled a common leaf - could summon a thunderstorm at his will; a storm that he could control by moving only his hands and that would leave him untouched by its destruction. It was an adequate wu to have won in a showdown - against Kimiko, as it happened - and Jack was eager to show it off to his lover.

The evil boy genius - as he liked to be known - crossed the halls, peering into each room he passed in an attempt to see his lover, but he couldn't see him. Just like Chase - he disappeared without warning, sometimes leaving Jack talking to thin air. Once, Jack had held a conversation with thin air for fifteen minutes before he had realised that his lover was no longer there.

"Typical" Jack muttered, when he finally managed to locate Chase Young.

The dragon was in an empty room, practicing various simple moves of tai chi, his style of fighting. He moved slowly, working his way gently through the most basic moves, seeing as his swollen stomach no longer allowed him to actually jump around and fight like he used to. It was different to see Chase wearing loose, black clothes in the place of his usual armour, which he could no longer fit into no matter what magic he tried to use.

"What do you want, Spicer?" he muttered.

Spicer - Chase still called him that. It was funny - the only time he consistently called him Jack was in bed.

"Look, Chase!" Jack grinned, proudly revealing the shen gong wu, holding it triumphantly like it was a trophy. "I beat Kimiko in a Xiaolin showdown."

"So, you actually managed to defeat one of the monks."

"Ah, that Kimiko's no match for me - no upper body strength."

"Do not underestimate her, Spicer. Kimiko is a Xiaolin monk, and she possesses the same strength they all do."

Jack nodded, muttering that he knew all this under his breath and shying away from the glare of his lover as Chase heard him regardless.

Chase walked past Jack without any more words, straight to his chamber where he sat on his throne and tried to ignore the ever-growing pain in his back - it was worse today since the thing inside him refused to admit that kicking him was a bad idea. He tried to look down at the arena below with authority, but in his slack clothes with his stomach swollen in front of him with the child, it was almost impossible to seem fierce.

Jack had, naturally, followed his lover into the dimly lit chamber and he looked at the mighty Chase Young with sympathy in his red eyes. No matter how hard he tried to hide it, the pain was evident on the dragon's face.

"Chase …" Jack whispered, heading up towards his lover and standing at his side.

Chase glared at Jack - it was that damn lover of his who had put him in this condition! Whether it had been his idea or not didn't matter.

"What do you want? I'm not in the mood for a chat."

"I know" Jack smiled. "Here, lean forward."

"What are you up to?" Chase muttered.

"You'll see" Jack said, gently pushing Chase's shoulders forward and smiling when the elder of the two leaned forward a little. "You don't look exactly comfortable."

Chase growled a little but was silenced when he felt his lover's hands beginning to massage the muscles of his back, untying stress knots slowly.

"What are you doing?" Chase muttered, already knowing but unwilling to succumb instantly to his lover's affection.

Jack didn't answer, but Chase couldn't get mad at him, because his back was feeling slightly better already thanks to the smooth ministrations. It wasn't that Jack had special skills with massages - he was amateur at best - but rather that Chase really was overly tense. Adding to the general back pain that came with pregnancy, there was the added strain of trying to let it all remain unnoticed.

Chase was glad that he had made Jack promise to keep their shen gong wu at Jack's own home - it meant that, should the monks or Hannibal Bean come for a raid, they wouldn't be bothering him and finding out about the … problem.

"You're really tense, Chase. Is everything okay?"

"I've been getting kicked all day. What do you think, Spicer?" Chase muttered, leaning forward to press his fingertips against his forehead in annoyance.

Jack looked down at his lover for a second, not stopping his fingers moving, wishing he could see the other's face.

Was it wrong of him to be genuinely happy about their situation? Jack was a children person - he loved kids. And babies were just so cute! He couldn't be happier that Chase was carrying his child, especially seeing as it should never have been able to happen - not only were they both male, but Chase was undoubtedly the dominant one. This was a blessing and a half.

The only problem was that Chase genuinely didn't seem happy about it.

Jack smiled a little, although his heart was heavy.

"The kid giving you a real beating today, huh?" he murmured.

Chase grunted in response, his eyes closed so that he wouldn't have to see his swollen stomach.

/

Little talk was made between the two lovers for the rest of the evening, and it was after midnight - in their bedroom, where they lay with a foot of space between them - when Jack finally decided that he could no longer keep his opinions inside of his head.

"You know, Chase, I've been thinking a lot and … maybe this isn't such a bad thing" he said, smiling, as he indicated the dragon's stomach.

Chase groaned a little.

"Spicer, you haven't thought this was a bad thing since I told you about it."

"Hey, I'm trying to make conversation here" Jack complained.

"Don't" Chase stated simply.

Jack sighed - why did Chase have to be so awkward?

"Y'know, Chase, it may not be a bad thing. Aren't you gonna enjoy being a mommy …"

Whatever else Jack was going to say was cut off when Chase suddenly seized him roughly around the throat.

"_Don't _call me that again" he hissed, his tone so dangerously low it was barely audible. He dropped the other away from him, inwardly pleased at the red finger marks around his throat. "I may be enormous, but I can still deal with you quite easily."

Jack gulped, aware that Chase was not bluffing. But he had heard something he didn't like, and Jack had a big mouth …

"You're not enormous, Chase. You look … good."

"I look huge" Chase glared. "Do not tell me anything but the truth. And I can see myself, Spicer."

Jack gulped again. "Chase …"

"I am aware of my condition, Spicer."

"Don't say it like it's a bad thing, Chase. Remember, it's your child, too."

"I have no interest in reproducing …" Chase began, but was interrupted by the movement from within his own body.

A gasp left his lips as his hand instinctively flew to his stomach - he recoiled at the swollen feel of it. Someone weaker would have whimpered at the feeling of the abnormally strong kicks coming from inside his own body, but Chase Young pinched his lips together so that he made no sound whatsoever. There was absolutely no reason for this. He hadn't moved at an odd angle or anything, hadn't exerted his body. Damn it, what did it _want_?

"Chase, are you okay?"

There was no answer, and Jack's hand gently placed itself on the bloated abdomen of the other, feeling the pounding kicks of his unborn child. Jack couldn't help but smile - though that smile vanished quickly when he realised that Chase hadn't even yelled at him for touching him.

Instead, he was just sitting perfectly motionless, a look of concentration on his face.

Jack had a mini heart attack as he screamed, "_it's the baby, isn't it? Call the doctor! The baby's coming!_"

Chase groaned and his hand flew up, hitting Jack on the chin and sending him flying away.

"Don't be ridiculous, Spicer. It's just trying to kill me from the inside."

Jack sat up, whimpering about the pain on his chin. Okay, so maybe the baby wasn't coming - it was just kicking. False alarm.

"Y'know, Chase, you really shouldn't just hit me like that. You're not gonna be able to do that with the kid …"

"One more word, Spicer, and I will see to it myself that you don't live to see the child."

Many would have been scared - Jack, normally, would have been whining for his mommy. But a part of Chase's sentence had caught him off guard and was now making him smile.

"The child …" he grinned.

This was the first time that Chase Young had actually referred, out loud, to the baby as being a child - a human being. His usual adoring names for the baby ranged from 'thing' and 'it' to 'mistake' and 'problem'.

And yet, here was the proof - slipped out or not - that Chase was fully aware of his situation. He accepted that he was carrying a baby, his own child.

"Our child" Jack whispered.

And he could say no more as a fist suddenly came into contact with his face, successfully exhausting the one who had thrown the punch and knocking out the evil boy genius.

/

Breakfast was, to say the least, tense. Chase and Jack were not talking, and while Chase was finding it all quite peaceful, Jack was getting more and more irritated by it. He was bored but knew that talking, especially mindless chatter, would only serve to antagonise his lover. So, instead, the evil genius let his mind wander …

And it was then that the idea came to him.

He lived with Chase. His wu was at his old home. (He hoped to remain here after the baby was born).

He had, just the previous evening, won a showdown against one of the monks. And he had very little wu, but this had to be a sign that his luck was beginning to change …

The only thing he would need would be more wu. Once he had it all, evil domination was his to have - well, he'd have to share with Chase, but that was cool, too.

And he knew just where to get the wu.

From the shen gong wu vault at the Xiaolin temple …

Hazeru - Looks like Jack's planning a raid.

Hera - And Chase is none too happy about the baby.

Hazeru - Will Jack's raid be successful?

Hera - R&R please.


	3. Chapter 2  Raid

Hazeru - We'll see the monks in this chapter.

Hera - Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Chapter 2

Raid

'_I am the greatest evil boy genius ever to walk the face of the earth!_'

Jack's own, egotistical thoughts swam around his head like fish in the water, as his hands seized the shen gong wu from the vault at the Xiaolin temple. By now, he would really have thought that the monks' guard on the wu would be better - evidently, he had them beaten this time, well and truly.

When the sack he had brought with him was full to the brim with the stolen wu, Jack finally made his escape. He considered it to be a complete success - this was the first time in … he couldn't even remember how long it had been, since a raid on their vault had gone this smoothly and so successfully. He couldn't wait to see the look on his lover's face when he returned home, unharmed, with the stolen wu.

Well, with the news that he had the wu. He couldn't actually bring it to Chase as proof, seeing as Chase was adamant that any shen gong wu they acquired where to be kept in Jack's old home. He was hoping that, with no wu in their possession, they'd be left alone. It was almost well known that Jack wasn't keeping shen gong wu at Chase's lair, even though they thought Chase had disappeared - an unexplained disappearance, as they might call it.

/

The shen gong wu was safely stored in a safe, and he had taken photographic evidence that he had it to show to Chase Young, as proof of his victory. Granted, all he'd done was steal the wu from the Xiaolin vault, but that in and of itself could be considered an achievement for Jack Spicer.

Now that it was safe, Jack headed for home - he liked to be able to call it that - where his lover was already asleep. Chase, Jack thought, looked much more calm and placid when he was sleeping. There was no scowl on his face, no trace of resentment or anger; only a calm, peaceful look. Not to mention that Chase - although Jack would never dare tell him - nowadays slept curled up, with one hand resting on his stomach. It was like he was protecting the unborn child from harm unconsciously, even though he may not care about it when he was aware of what he was doing. In slumber, it was all different. Jack loved observing his lover when he didn't even know it.

Having arrived home with no troubles whatsoever, Jack was sorely tempted to wake Chase, if just to boast about his victory. But a more sensible part of himself - one that had been gradually growing since he had managed to knock Chase up - told him that it was a bad idea to wake the sleeping warrior. It would mean missing out on the chance to see him like this, not to mention that Chase would be less than impressed by being woken up at midnight - he seemed to have trouble getting to sleep, and whenever Jack asked him why, he would just say that the 'thing' inside him, didn't think he needed sleep.

It wasn't the baby's fault. It was only moving the way that all unborn babies did inside their mother - although this had to be different considering the situation.

The kid was strong, that was all. Jack didn't get it - with Chase Young as its mother, how couldn't the kid be strong? The problem was that, whenever the baby kicking or even moved around, it caused Chase a lot of pain. It almost seemed that as the child gained strength, Chase lost it - and with it, a little more of his willpower each time.

/

As the morning sun rose, four previously peaceful young monks were awoken from their slumber by a shrill scream of shock. All four were instantly on their feet and running towards the source of the sound - it had come from their dragon, Dojo. More accurately, it had come from Dojo, who was inside the shen gong wu vault. And he didn't normally make sounds like that unless …

Two options. One, a new shen gong wu had revealed itself. Two, the vault had been broken into.

Hoping and praying that option one was the cause of Dojo's noisiness, the young dragons-in-training were unhappy to realise that, in reality, option two was correct. The vault door was hanging by its hinges, a sure sign of a break-in.

"They took nearly all of our wu!" Dojo complained. "You know, we should really get a better security system for this thing."

Omi, Clay and Kimiko gaped at the open drawers while Raimundo continuously hit his head off the nearest wall. He was the leader, shouldn't he be able to stop things like this from happening? He had never imagined that being the leader would come with such added pressure, but it was certain that with the position came added worries and responsibility.

"Who could have done this?" Kimiko snarled.

"Who else? That no good snake in the grass, Spicer!" Clay muttered, frowning as he realised that the Third Arm Sash was also missing, along with so many other shen gong wu. "He must've raided the place while we were all sleeping."

"Jack Spicer has gone too far. It is up to us, especially me, to go collect our stolen shen gong wu! With my impressively amazing skills, I am sure that he is no match for us" Omi proclaimed, causing the others to groan in annoyance - it was too early for Omi's ego.

"Listen, there, partner, I think we'd better ask Rai what he thinks" Clay said gently, causing Omi to momentarily freeze.

Omi had accepted that Raimundo was the leader, but that didn't mean he didn't sometimes still feel cheated.

Raimundo sighed a little. Just for once, maybe it would be nice if the others turned to someone else - anyone, even Omi - for directions. He was the leader but that didn't mean he had all the answers.

"Well, I'm with Omi. I say we go hunt down Jack and take back our wu!" Raimundo said, authority in his tone, though he smiled at Omi for coming up with the 'plan' nonetheless.

The other three monks nodded in agreement, all mentally preparing to go kick some robots' butts, and to take back what Spicer had stolen from them.

/

"Jack Spicer, prepare for a most humiliating defeat!"

The door to Jack Spicer's home was flung open and across the room as a foot collided with it. The four Xiaolin monks leapt in, already anticipating the cry for his precious robots to attack, but Jack's typical war-cry never came.

Maybe that was because he was not there at all.

"Where is that no good varmint?" Clay muttered, pulling a picture off the wall. Behind it was a safe. "Hey, lookie here."

"A safe? That must be where Jack keeps his wu" Raimundo said, grinning.

"Of course, a most difficult safe to crack. However, with my mathematical skills, I will burst open the safe, and …"

"No need, Omi" Kimiko interrupted, as she rolled the dial on the safe around three times, causing the door to swing open. "One, two, three."

"Typical" Raimundo muttered, peering into the safe. His green eyes widened slightly. "Hey! All of the wu Jack stole from us is in here."

"So, then … where is he?" Omi mused, looking around the room for any signs of a trap or an ambush, but finding none.

Kimiko had grabbed some shen gong wu from the safe, and she studied it for a moment before looking up at them in confusion.

"Look, guys, the Herb Of Grace."

"That's the one Spicer won off you yesterday" Clay gasped.

"Yeah, and check this out" Kimiko continued. "The Changing Chopsticks are here, and the Serpent's Tail. We didn't have these wu."

"So, does that mean that Jack Spicer is keeping all of his shen gong wu … here?"

"Looks like it, little buddy."

"But why would he keep it all here? Didn't he move in with Chase Young?" Raimundo muttered, trying to work it all out. "Well, move in. Chase disappeared."

"Yes, though I find that most unsatisfactory" Omi said, one finger on his chin thoughtfully. "It is not like Chase Young to just disappear, leaving Jack his home …"

The other three monks all looked at each other, expressions ranging from worriment to pity to annoyance. After all that the dragon had done, Omi still seemed to care somewhat for Chase Young. Omi seemed to think that he owed Chase for teaching him the moves that had helped him win many showdowns - and while it was pretty much true, Chase was the enemy.

"Anyway," Raimundo interrupted, "why don't we go pay Jack a visit and find out what's _really _going on?"

Hazeru - Looks like the monks are going to pay a visit to Jack. But Chase is actually still there ...

Hera - R&R please.


	4. Chapter 3  Shock And Honourable Words

Hazeru - Now the monks are going after Jack.

Hera - Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Chapter 3

Shock Horror And Honourable Words

The door to the lair previously owned by the great Chase Young swung open easily enough, and although the monks had come only to get the truth out of their cowardly enemy, all four were instantly in defensive positions, prepared for an attack by one of the jungle cats that Chase had always kept with him.

The hall they entered into was very quiet and calm and surreal, but the place was clean and tidy - and that, in and off itself, was wrong. They had suspected that the place would be a mess, considering it was now Jack Spicer who lived here. They hadn't doubted that he would have the place trashed, and yet here it was, just the same as it had always been, not that any of them liked the place: it was the home of one of their most powerful enemies, or at least it had been.

"Looks like nobody's home" Raimundo muttered, as he walked forward, the others following slightly behind him. "You'd think Jack would have had his bots attack us by now."

"I agree" Omi said suspiciously. "There is definitely something on about this place."

"Something off" Clay corrected with a sigh.

"That, too."

"Hey, guys …" Kimiko gulped, pointing up to one of the platforms, on which stood a large panther. "Looks like Chase's cats didn't leave when he did."

The four warriors took up their positions, ready to attack and defend. But the cat didn't attack. Its icy glare was fixed on them and it stood motionless, and that gave all four of them the chills. It was just standing there, but how long for? Still, it didn't mean that it didn't give them time to talk, though their eyes were fixed on the panther.

"What's with this? If Chase left, why's kitty still here?" Raimundo said.

"Maybe Chase got tired of them?" Clay offered.

"Oh, no. Chase Young would never give up the warriors he had beaten" Omi said, eyes fixed on the cat. "My fellow warriors, what if Jack Spicer has trapped Chase Young and he is still here?"

The others looked at him in confusion.

"Remember once, Jack trapped Chase Young in the Sphere Of Yun, and he gained all of his powers" Omi said, a smile spreading slyly across his face. "What if he has done the exact same thing?"

"Doesn't Hannibal Bean have the Sphere Of Yun?" Kimiko murmured, finding a flaw in the plan.

Omi's face fell. "Kimiko, you are quite correct" he muttered. "But I still do not understand."

The others all agreed that it was peculiar, and were about to either advance or retreat when they were interrupted by a voice that cut through them.

/

"What do we have here?"

A gasp came simultaneously from the four Xiaolin monks as they recognised the voice well.

"Chase Young" Omi gasped.

The man was silhouetted standing on a higher platform, in the shadows so that only the vague outline of his figure could be made out. But that was enough for them to notice that something was different.

Raimundo may have been the leader, but that didn't mean he wasn't the same old joker that he had always been.

"Dude, you really wanna cut back on the soup. You're putting on the pounds" he remarked.

It was true - Chase really did seem to have put on a lot of weight, but only around his stomach.

An annoyed growl came from the warrior but no attack or advance was made.

"I suggest you monks leave before I have to take care of you" he said, his voice icy.

"And just how are you gonna do that?" Clay muttered.

"We came to find out what's going on with Jack Spicer" Kimiko barked, getting straight to the point. "If you're protecting him, then tell him to get out here and fight his own battles."

Her words were unnecessary - Jack Spicer was already coming that way, following his lover like a lost puppy.

"Hey, Chase, I just had this brilliant idea! If the baby's a girl we could call her Jacqueline and then shorted it to Jack so that it would almost be liked she was named for me and …"

He was cut off when he finally entered the same room from a lower passageway and noticed the Xiaolin monks.

"Hey, what're they doing here?"

"We could ask you the same question" Omi glared. "Jack Spicer, explain yourself!"

"What's Chase still doing here?"

"What's this about a baby?"

"Why in tarnations are you telling people he's gone when Chase Young is standing right here?"

/

This was not good.

Not only did the monks now know that he was still here, Spicer had just blurted out something about a baby, and the monks were not stupid. They had already seen that he was not as well built as he used to be. Chase could practically see the wheels and gears turning in their minds as they began to piece it all together.

It was Raimundo who got there first, ahead of the others.

"No way" he gasped. "The dragon dude's pregnant!"

Chase growled as the words were said out loud. He vaguely wanted to turn into his true form, a dragon, but he resisted the urge - he looked even worse in that form, with his stomach swollen. For once he actually looked more commanding in his human form.

The other three monks stared at Chase, and the dragon warrior decided that, since it was out in the open anyway, he might as well come forward and give them a good look at the mockery he had become.

Gasps came from the monks as they saw Chase Young in the light. He was wearing loose black clothes and his stomach was swollen - fully consistent with the idea of pregnancy. He glared at them, however, the same way that he usually did, so evidently his attitude hadn't changed a bit.

"Unbelievable. Chase is …" Kimiko whispered.

"I said it was all odd! I was right! You see? You see?" Omi babbled.

"I see, but I don't know if I can believe" Clay muttered.

"How is that even possible?" Raimundo wondered aloud.

It was at this moment that Dojo - who had previously been hiding beneath Omi's robes, seeing as he was, with good reason, wary around Chase Young - popped out into the open and decided to offer an explanation.

"See, kids, in some species of dragon, it's the male who carries and births the offspring. I've never seen two males having kids together, but Chase is a unique creature. There's no other person like him in the world."

"You got that right" Spicer piped up, moving to stand in front of the monks, hands on his hips and a smirk on his face.

"Hey, wait a second" Raimundo said. "You said two males, Dojo. So, Chase is one, who's the other?"

"Who do you think, Xiaolin losers?" Jack asked, causing a rock to suddenly hit him on the head, knocking him over. Evidently, Chase hadn't wanted him to say, but it was too late for that now.

"_Jack Spicer_!" Omi shouted. "You are playing with my head!"

"That's _messing _with your head, partner."

"Thank you, Clay, that, too" Omi corrected himself. "Chase Young, you and Jack Spicer are …"

"What we are, little one, is of no concern to you" Chase hissed, and he snapped his fingers.

Suddenly, the jungle cats had multiplied and surrounded the monks, teeth bared. A frightened squeal came from Jack Spicer as he leapt out of the way, hiding behind a pillar.

"What are you doing?" he screamed, praying he wouldn't be the cats' next victim - his lover was his lover, but was Chase Young nonetheless, and Chase Young could get merciless when the mood took him.

"We can not allow them to leave, Spicer, now that they know our secret" Chase hissed, and he was about to give the command for the cats to attack, but he never got the chance, because it was at that moment that a sudden pain came sharply from inside him and he collapsed to his knees on the ground.

/

Jack screamed as he watched his lover crumple to the ground, and dashed up the glistening steps towards him. He fell to his knees - somewhat less gracefully than he would have liked - beside Chase, grabbing the man's hand and demanding to know what was wrong. He knew instantly that it was serious - normally Chase would have snatched his hand back and possibly hit Jack as well, but now he just clutched onto the evil boy genius, a sure sign that something wasn't right.

The monks were frozen, wondering if they should leave or stay. The cats had turned their attention away from them by now and were facing towards their master, still on the ground and seemingly in pain.

"Come on, let's get outta here" Kimiko muttered, turning to leave, but Omi stopped her by throwing his arm in her path. "Omi?"

"Fellow monks, Chase Young is hurt. It is our duty as Xiaolin warriors to help him."

"_What_?"

"Hey, hold on a second, partner."

"_Help _him?" Dojo gasped.

"Omi, are you _nuts_? Chase is the enemy!"

"That may be, Raimundo," Omi continued, standing firm against his friends, "but I owe him a great deal. If not for his training, I would have lost many Xiaolin showdowns and along with them, many shen gong wu. I will not ask you to stay with me. You can return to the temple. But I will repay my debt to Chase Young, as an honourable Xiaolin warrior."

The other three stared at him as if he was crazy or had just grown another head, but eventually, Raimundo nodded.

"If Omi wants to stay, then we have to stay with him. All for one."

"And one for all" Kimiko finished.

Clay just nodded and smiled, and Omi looked at them with eyes filled with deep gratitude.

"Thank you, my friends."

/

"Omi, that was a dangerous move" Master Fung commented. "Now that you have sworn to assist and protect Chase Young, you are bound by your Xiaolin word." He stood up so that he towered over the seated dragons-to-be. "And I understand that you all made the same promise as Omi?"

"We couldn't let the little guy do it on his own" Clay insisted.

"And what exactly did you promise?" Master Fung persisted.

"That should Chase Young need us all the time that he is not in top form, we will help him" Omi said. "Master Fung, I had a great deal to repay …"

"I understand, Omi. I just hope that you understand what you have gotten yourselves into, young monks."

The four monks nodded, all looking downcast and displeased with themselves, and with good reason. They had promised Chase and Jack Spicer that, if they needed them for help with Chase's health in the next month, they would come and assist. It was a risky promise to make, but one that Jack Spicer seemed genuinely grateful for. Chase, less so - he insisted that he needed no help from anyone, particularly a bunch of Xiaolin monks and a whining insect, meaning Jack Spicer.

But inevitably, the monks promise had stood strong. Chase was in no condition to argue and Jack had agreed, and so the monks were bound by their word to be there when the two needed them. It was a responsibility that none of them liked to think of, but that they knew Omi needed them to stand by - the little guy sure was faithful to the people who had helped him on his still ongoing journey to being a Xiaolin dragon.

Omi himself was a little worried - not about himself, but about his friends. This was his promise, his debt, his responsibility. He may not be the leader, but whatever happened due to this promise, it was on him.

Why did he feel such responsibility, such loyalty? He had once sworn loyalty to Chase Young, it was true, but he hadn't been himself, him being on the Heylin side at the time. And besides, he had won a showdown, along with his friends, against Chase and had gained his freedom. He owed Chase nothing, so why did he feel like he owed him so much?

Simple. Without Chase, he would not know some of his best moves. And without those moves, he would have lost many battles. For teaching him those moves when there was no need for it, he owed Chase Young.

And he was going to repay him.

None of the monks would tell a soul about the dragon warrior's almost unbelievable pregnancy, and they would not attempt to attack him or Jack for the duration of the pregnancy - how hard could it be? There was only one month to go.

Still, Omi could see Chase, as the proud warrior he truly was. And at the same time, he could only see him in the way he'd last seen him: swollen in the stomach, eyes closed tightly in pain, no longer the warrior that had caused them so many problems in the past.

He would keep Chase's secret at all costs. They all would.

It was just a shame, that Omi and the others did not notice the all-too-familiar grey and red bird named Ying-Yang, perched on the windowsill, listening to their conversation …

Hazeru - I always did think Omi had a bit of guilt put away because Chase taught him some of his best moves.

Hera - And now that he and the monks made the promise, what'll happen?

Hazeru - And they've been watched ...

Hera - R&R please


	5. Chapter 4  Plotting True Evil

Hazeru - Here's the next chapter, guess who we see ...

Hera - Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Chapter 4

Plotting True Evil And Losing The Wu

A snicker followed the message that had just been played back to Hannibal Roy Bean, and he grinned at his evil partner, the Heylin witch Wuya - not all powerful but a still worthy partner. Hannibal had used the Moby Morpher - his personal favourite of the shen gong wu - to allow himself to grow in size, so he stood perhaps an inch taller than the red haired glamorous witch.

"So, the monks have made a promise to Chase Young. Now ain't that sweet" Hannibal grinned, sarcasm in his tone. "I didn't know turning Chase into what he is now had had such an effect on him."

"The fact that he really isn't enjoying it makes the knowledge so much sweeter. And if Chase really is weakened, then it'll be easy to dispose of him" Wuya chimed in. "We'll be able to get rid of Chase, Jack and their little brat, all in the one evil day."

"Evil is truly rewarding" Hannibal grinned.

"And just think of all the shen gong wu we could get out of it" Wuya added, already fantasising about the sheer amounts of the objects she could obtain. "Without Jack or Chase Young, the Xiaolin monks will be our only enemy."

"And they'll have to keep their word to Chase, so we might even get rid of them in the process."

Cackles of laughter came from the cave in which they were hiding, as the two began to put together their evil plan to get rid of Chase Young, and all who stood with him, once and for all.

/

"Heads up, kids!" Dojo called. "A new shen gong wu just revealed itself!"

The four Xiaolin monks looked up at Master Fung, who had just walked calmly through the doorway, carrying a scroll with Dojo riding on his shoulders.

"It is called the Black Death" Master Fung informed them, spreading the scroll out on a table so that they could all see. "When used, this shen gong wu sends forth a powerful black fog that causes one's enemy to become very sickly when breathed, if only temporarily. It is a dangerous shen gong wu when in the wrong hands."

"So we must not allow the forces of evil to get it!" Omi stated, and he and the three monks headed out along with Dojo, to go in search of the newly activated shen gong wu.

Meanwhile, the forces of evil had also realised that a new wu had gone active …

"The Black Death shen gong wu! Man, I am totally getting this!" Jack Spicer proclaimed, gathering together his things and his wu-detector, before looking over at his lover. "You'll be okay while I'm gone?"

A swift slap to the face sorted Jack's overly protective attitude.

"Spicer, I am not helpless, nor would I require _your _assistance if I was" Chase growled. "Remember, thanks to your idiocy, the Xiaolin monks seem to have adopted me."

A sneer was spreading across the dragon's face as he spoke, and Jack gulped. Clearly Chase was none too happy about the monks finding out and vowing to protect him - even Jack had to admit that it was a helpful gesture, and yet Chase seemed to treat it like a death sentence.

"Well, in that case, I'm off to do evil and find this new wu!"

"Just go" Chase muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose between two fingers in agitation.

Jack nodded and leaned down to peck his lover on the cheek, quickly backing off in case the other wasn't happy about it - there were times when Chase would be affectionate, but ever since he had become pregnant, there had been very little of those moments. He seemed to find physical contact irritating in and of itself. Jack had once read that pregnant women sometimes craved intimacy, but evidently, that did not apply to Chase whatsoever.

Now, Chase glared at Jack - a glare that warned him that, while weakened, he was still capable of doing Spicer serious damage - until the gothic evil boy genius had fled from the room in terror, automatically heading out to find the Black Death shen gong wu.

Inside the lair, Chase leaned back in his throne, eyes closed in self pity and annoyance, and if he was honest, pain. The child was moving around a lot today, squirming and kicking violently.

Chase opened his eyes to glare at his own stomach.

"Stop it" he hissed. "Don't you realise that hurts?"

The only response he was offered was a sharp kick to the ribs, and he grunted at the pain it caused - and also in annoyance; when had his body become so … weak?

The kicking from inside him continued mercilessly. His threats getting no obvious response, Chase hesitantly laid one hand on his stomach, feeling the kicks on his hand as well as inside him. Now, he may not have been happy with his situation, but he was smart enough to notice that, the moment his hand fell on his stomach, the kicking became slightly less ferocious - like the touch calmed the child, though not enough for its movement to cease.

While almost wanting to retch at the discomfort of it all, Chase Young moved his hand around on his stomach, the motion merely soothing circles, calming the baby. After a few minutes of this, the movement had died down to a dull squirming, the kicking had stopped and the child was undoubtedly calmer. This surprised Chase - was his touch able to just calm the child down, just like that?

Oh well. Not like he really cared, either way. He just wanted it to stop hitting him so that he could get some rest.

Now that the thing inside him had stopped trying to beat him to death from the inside, Chase made his way slowly to his bedchamber and laid down on his luxurious bed. His jungle cats sometimes stayed to watch over him, but none were here right now. There was a mess - mainly of burnt food and pots and pans, caused, naturally, by Jack Spicer - in the kitchen, and they were probably busy dealing with that, and with their other duties around the place. Some would also be out spying.

As Chase's eyes closed, he didn't even realise - was too exhausted to realise - that having the cats around as protection would have been extremely handy. As it was, neither he nor they noticed the two stealthily invading his home, sneaking into his room, putting the chloroformed cloth over his mouth …

/

"Ha! Jack Spicer, you are no match for me!" Omi proclaimed to the world as he proudly held the Black Death shen gong wu above his head in triumph.

He and the other monks had reached the shen gong wu at the same time, causing he and Jack to get into a showdown for it - the game had been blindfolded hide-and-seek, first to find the shen gong wu wins. Naturally, Omi had found it first, thanks to his warrior skills and the Tongue Of Saiping.

Grimacing in defeat, Jack Spicer gathered the broken remains of his beloved bots and started the journey back home. This was just great - not only did he lose the Black Death shen gong wu, he also lost the Shadow Slicer, which hadn't been a good wu to wager in the first place, given the showdown had involved blindfolds. Dammit, why didn't he ever think? Chase was _not _going to be happy with him.

Then again, he had some things to discuss with Chase. Like how weird it was that neither Hannibal Bean nor Wuya had even bothered to show up at the scene. Hannibal, Jack could excuse, but _Wuya_? That old witch _lived _to find the shen gong wu; her absence wasn't just unexpected, it was unbelievable. Just typical - Jack couldn't win the shen gong wu even when they hadn't showed up.

The evil boy genius grumbled about it all the way back.

/

"Chase? Eh … Chase? Listen, I'm sorry about the shen gong wu. Please don't hurt me, 'cause …"

Jack stopped talking when he noticed that the main chamber, where Chase normally was located, was empty, save for the couple of jungle cats who were wandering around aimlessly, like they had lost something.

Or someone …

_Wonder if he's in bed_, Jack thought, heading up to the bedroom he normally shared with Chase - the dragon was remarkably tolerable of his lover's presence in the bed, though he could sometimes kick him out and demand peace and quiet for the night.

But the bedroom was empty. Jack frowned, and began a search of the building. And while on his little search for Chase Young, Jack realised the obvious: the jungle cats were on the same search.

Something had slipped past them. Some_one_ had slipped past them.

Chase was gone.

Hazeru - What's going to happen to poor Chase?

Hera - R&R please


	6. Chapter 5  More Fun For Me

Hazeru - Sorry for the wait, I was on holiday, lol.

Hera - Enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Chapter 5

More Fun For Me

Despite the heaviness of the pain in all areas of his body, the constant dripping noise was becoming increasingly annoying. Considering that they were perhaps sixty feet underground, directly beneath his lair, Chase wondered if the moisture had come from his own home, perhaps by a broken pipe or some other necessity that he had overlooked due to the strain of the past few months, something that had passed by the cats.

A bit like his biggest enemy and former partner slash housekeeper. Wuya had never actually 'worked' for him as such, but she had been floating around like a housekeeper, and had done for him about as much as a poor worker would have. In return, he had given her residence and even her body, though stripped of her powers. She had been a worthy partner in evil but entirely untrustworthy, and now he realised just how big a mistake it had been to ever let her into his life.

A sigh escaped his lips, and he wished more than ever that he could turn into his dragon form - his true form - and escape from this wretched place, these disgusting people. But whatever cage Hannibal Bean had concealed him in had some kind of magic spell on it - he was completely unable to transform. He didn't know how Hannibal had achieved this, but when he found out, he'd make sure to never let it happen again. He supposed it almost made sense that Hannibal Bean should be able to stop him from transforming into a stronger form - Hannibal had been the one to provide him with that form in the first place, offering him the potion that had turned him to the Heylin side …

No transformation. No real strength, either, seeing as his condition had robbed him of most of that. He'd been drugged - he could smell that much on his skin. How they had gotten in without the cats noticing or he himself waking up was a mystery to Chase - had the pregnancy truly affected him so badly? Was he really so tired that he could sleep through an attack?

Dammit, how it had happened didn't matter!

What mattered now was the figure standing across from him, and the cackling figure behind his blobby shape …

"What's the matter, Chase? Can't take it like a man?" Hannibal taunted.

"Or are you not a man, after all?" Wuya teased. "It's not just any guy that can honestly claim he's carrying a child."

If his wrists weren't bound by chains - also bound around the waist and ankles - he could not break, Chase would have torn her limb from limb. How dare she question him that way! Dammit, if only the chains would break, or if he could only transform! But the cage - made not of metal or solid material, but bars of untouchable electric black magic - would not allow him to do that.

He glared at Wuya.

"I have no idea how this came to be" Chase said, as calmly as he could, not giving them the satisfaction of seeing any fear or distress. "I trust that it is some trickery of yours, Hannibal Bean?"

"Aw, Chase, I didn't know it had done that to you" Hannibal grinned, sarcasm lacing his voice. "If I'd known, I'd have gotten some whiny teenager to knock you up years ago."

A snarl followed that remark, and a hard punch crashed into the dragon's face to silence him. Hannibal grinned sadistically, his face a picture of smugness mixed with delight.

"Now, now, mind you manners, Chase" he teased.

Wuya came forward then, leaning over to place a chaste kiss on the pale lips of the chained up Chase Young. He turned his face away and spat out the taste of the old witch - had he not had more dignity, he might well have vomited.

"What's the matter, baby?" Wuya cooed. "Don't like the taste of women? You prefer silly little boys, don't you?"

The taunting of the witch was enough to make him want to kill her. The sly grin of the bean behind her was enough to make him wish for his own death.

Chase Young was immortal. But this was Hannibal Bean, and he was sheer evil, no trace of goodness in his soul or body. Hannibal Bean had found the things that would manage to end the life of Chase Young, through the simple acts of beating him to death.

It would be quick and, aside from the beatings, painless.

Which was exactly why it was not enough.

Chase Young had trapped him in the Ying-Yang World, and was his biggest enemy and threat. He deserved death, for certain. But it had to be long and drawn out. It had to be excruciating, it had to be so painful that Chase would beg for mercy …

"Wuya, stop."

Both Chase and Wuya looked in confusion at the giant evil vegetable that had just spoken - giant only by use of the Moby Morpher shen gong wu.

"What?" Wuya muttered, irritated.

"I want to watch him squirm" Hannibal grinned, and he flew forward to land a crashing punch in Chase's gut. "Wuya."

"My pleasure" the old witch said, understanding her partner in evil instantly.

Her foot swung up to kick the imprisoned dragon straight across the face, and then she stepped back, falling into place beside Hannibal, who pulled forth a shen gong wu and aimed it squarely at his enemy's chest.

"Thorn Of Thunderbolt" he called, and a stream of powerful lightning hit Chase right on the chest, pulling an involuntary scream of agony from his throat.

Hannibal and Wuya grinned.

"Now, Chase Young, you will die. It will be slow and painful. And if you want the worst part of all, it's that I get to watch the whole thing."

Chase wanted to raise his head to spit in the bean's face, but he couldn't find the energy. Instead, he found only the deepest, most disgusting truth - Hannibal Roy Bean was right.

He would die. It would be slow. It would be painful.

He could not stop it any more than he could stop Hannibal from watching. This cage wasn't allowing him to do anything - no transforming into his dragon form, no teleporting, no healing.

It would let him die.

For once in his very long life, Chase Young felt truly helpless.

/

"Jack Spicer!" Omi shouted, spotting the frantic evil boy genius as he landed in the temple grounds. "If you are here to surrender, we accept the surrender. Otherwise, prepare for a most humiliating …"

"Shut it, cheese ball" Jack Spicer growled, running forward. "Is he here? Please tell me he's here!"

"Who?" Kimiko asked, falling into place beside Omi along with Clay, while Raimundo stood a little in front of the three of them, none in fighting position now.

"Chase Young" Jack shouted, running into the temple and peering around.

"Hold on, there, partner" Clay called, pulling the boy back by the shoulder. "Chase isn't here."

"Then where is he?" Jack cried, falling to his knees and using his hands to cover his face. "I went back after out showdown and he wasn't there! The cats haven't seen him, they don't know where he is. I don't know where he is! And the cats … they're … they're going around his room like they can smell something off but I don't know because I'm not a cat and what if something's happened to Chase and …"

A sudden slap to the face silenced Jack and he fell back abruptly.

"Thank you" Kimiko muttered sarcastically, and Raimundo grinned.

"Raimundo, that was most …"

"Necessary" Raimundo interrupted. "Now, Jack, are you being serious? If we find out Chase is at home just fine and this is some plan to steal our wu, we're not falling for it."

"I'm being deadly serious!" Jack screamed, and his screaming attracted Master Fung's attention.

"Young monks, are you having trouble?" he asked calmly.

"No, Master Fung, we are simply going to assist Jack Spicer in locating Chase Young" Omi said instantly, not giving the others a chance to reply. "Chase has disappeared."

"And you are certain that Jack Spicer tells the truth?"

"Oh, yes, Master Fung. He would not lie to us now, we are in a truce. We have to go, Master. We gave Chase Young our word" Omi said confidently, his trusting nature showing through his more innocent features. "And even if he was lying, we would be able to look around and take notes on Chase Young's health. As you once said, every cloud has a ground of gold."

"That's a silver lining" Raimundo muttered. "Master Fung, can you be sure to watch over the shen gong wu vault, just in case?"

"Of course" Master Fung nodded.

"Then let's go!" Raimundo grinned, and he grinned at Dojo. "Let's go, little dude."

Gulping at the thought of once again returning to the lair of Chase Young, Dojo transformed into his much larger form.

"All aboard" he called, and the monks climbed on, pulling Jack Spicer with them.

Master Fung watched as the dragon carrying the monks and one of their evil enemies disappeared into the distance, in the direction of Chase Young's lair.

If what Jack Spicer said was true, then he was certain of who was behind this.

But there was nothing he could do about it presently. This was a job for the monks, who were bound by their Xiaolin words to go and aid Chase Young, since he may be in peril.

For now, he made his way to the temple vault, to watch over the shen gong wu.

/

He had lived for fifteen hundred years. He was immortal. So he had never really given much thought to his death. He had, on the odd occasions that such a thought had crossed his mind at all, wondered if the time for him to die would ever actually come, or if he would live until the ends of the time and be devoured with the planet, along with all other life.

He had wondered if he would manage to get himself killed in some war, by some weapon that not even he could defend against. He wondered how long he'd have lived by then.

When Chase Young had ever thought about his own death, he had never pictured it like this.

In a cage and bound by chains, pain coursing through is body like a strong electric current. His old enemy, Hannibal Bean, and the Heylin witch Wuya, standing watching him, smirking at his pain that he could no longer conceal entirely.

There was no getting away from this. This truly was his end, his death.

And yet, he didn't want to. He didn't want to give up, surrender.

Considering the amount of pain he was in, body - and soul, had he had one - and mind, the natural reaction for anyone would have been to give in entirely, to throw in the towel and not take any more of the unavoidable pain.

Chase Young knew that only two things kept him from giving up on his own life.

The first thing was his strong determination: he would _not _give in to their wishes, he would _not _give them the satisfaction of begging them to kill him.

The second thing …

He didn't really know. It wasn't like anything he had ever felt before, something he wasn't used to.

It was the movement of the baby inside his stomach. Not kicking like before, but gently nudging against his stomach, begging to know what was going on in a world it couldn't see.

The 'thing' inside him was the whole cause of this. If he wasn't carrying the wretched thing, he'd be able to fight. Hell, he'd have been able to not let it get this far in the first place.

So why did he lower his head and think clearly, as if thinking his thoughts towards the swell of his stomach?

_I won't give in. I'll get us out of this. _

Where did those thoughts come from?

And if they were so special - wasn't parental love supposedly special in and of itself - then why did the pain keep cancelling them out, little by little, as the pain he felt increased …

Hazeru - Poor Chase, his powers have been rendered useless. Damn that bean!

Hera - The good side is he's having some different feelings towards the baby.

Hazeru - What will happen, though?

Hera - R&R please.


	7. Chapter 6 Tracking And Obstacles

Hazeru - Here's the next chapter.

Hera - Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Chapter 6

Tracking And Obstacles

"Well, we've done a full building search. Chase ain't here" Clay stated, folding his arms as he reluctantly admitted that Jack Spicer had been telling the truth.

"And the jungle cats are in the bedroom, sniffing around like there's something weird been in there" Kimiko added.

"There is something most unsettling about all of this" Omi said thoughtfully. "Look!"

In the young monk's outstretched hand lay a single feather, grey and tipped with red. A feather that was undoubtedly belonging to the Ying-Yang bird. Hannibal Bean's loyal bird.

"Hannibal Bean" the four monks chorused.

Jack Spicer let out a high pitched wail of despair. Chase gone, traces of Hannibal Bean, even he could work out what this meant! Hannibal Bean had waited until Chase was alone and had somehow managed to get past the jungle cats and kidnap Chase, and take him who knows where.

He might never see him again, and that thought terrified him, right down to his bones.

"We have to get him back."

The monks turned in surprise to their earliest enemy, evil boy genius Jack Spicer. The pale skinned boy had never spoken more sincere words. They began to realise Jack's true feelings, then.

Evildoer or not, Jack Spicer was deeply in love. He was in love with Chase Young, heart and soul. He needed him.

And it was the duty of a Xiaolin monk to help those in need.

Not to mention, they had made a promise to be there for Chase when he needed them, and now seemed like that time.

"How did Hannibal find out that Chase was pregnant?" Dojo asked.

"He must've been spying on us while we were talking to Master Fung" Kimiko gasped.

"So … this is our fault?" Omi murmured, wondering if his own ignorance of the bean's presence had cost Chase Young his life.

"It's not our fault, we didn't know" Raimundo said, and he smiled at Omi. "Besides, we can make it right again. We'll go get Chase back, safe and sound."

For someone who didn't give a damn about Chase Young, Raimundo was being remarkably true to his Xiaolin word. No matter how it might seem, Omi was proud of him. He nodded at the green eyed boy and offered him a smile, a thank you, a brief flash of trust and loyalty.

"But how?" Omi then whispered.

And once again Raimundo smiled.

"Credit me with some intelligence, Omi" he grinned, and he pulled a shen gong wu from the folds of his clothing. "I always come prepared."The other three monks gasped in glee. The leader of the group held in one hand the Mind Reader Conch.

"All we have to do is use the conch to track Chase's thoughts, and we'll find him, bust him out, and trash Hannibal Bean" Raimundo said, smiling. "Simple."

The other three glanced at each other momentarily, knowing all too well that it was going to be anything but simple. But still, they trusted in Raimundo, and in each other, and … well, not in Jack Spicer, but he would tag along regardless.

"Let's do this" Clay grinned.

"Time to kick some bean butt" Kimiko cheered.

And Omi nodded. "Hannibal Bean," he called, "prepare for a most humiliating defeat!"

Jack would have joined in had he not been so worried, and considering the somewhat gentler than usual looks the monks directed towards him, that might have been a good thing.

But he watched, as the others did, as Raimundo lifted the shen gong wu to his ear.

"Mind Reader Conch!"

Silence filled the room as Raimundo paced around it, angling the conch this way and that, desperately trying to hear the thoughts he needed to hear.

And eventually, he smiled triumphantly.

/

A crash came from about fifty feet up, causing two of the three people in the room to glance upwards.

"Looks like they figured it out" Wuya muttered.

Hannibal's eyes narrowed slightly. Nobody - _nobody _- was going to interfere with his plan.

"Wuya, head up the paths and stop them!"

Wuya cast a longing glance at the dying dragon warrior, desperate to see his end, but she did not argue - Hannibal Bean was her ticket to gaining her powers back again, the only one who worked well enough _and _supplied her with many shen gong wu. For the time being, she needed him.

And so she did not argue, and instead only walked forward to grab Chase Young by the chin and force him to meet her eyes. She deliberately dug her nail into his chin, smiling as she felt the droplet of blood run down her long finger. Chase had no life in his eyes, and yet they still managed to fill up with hatred as he looked into her own, mocking eyes.

She knew that he expected her to say something, which was exactly why she said nothing. Instead, she leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his cheek, holding his face firmly in place with her hand. But a kiss was not the end of it; Wuya sank her pointed teeth straight into his skin, making him gasp involuntarily at the pain she had just caused. She increased the pressure until she could taste the metallic tang of blood in her mouth, and then she pulled back and smirked at the bloody teeth marks on his face, at the pain she had personally caused him.

Without a word, she turned and left the underground cavern, heading up towards the entrance to their torture lair, knowing that this was where the monks and Jack Spicer would be heading - already she and Hannibal Bean were fully aware that they were coming.

She would wait here for them, and let them know that they did not have the element of surprise.

/

"It hurts, doesn't it?" Hannibal taunted.

Chase Young would not gratify him with an answer, but he knew that the bean was entirely right. It did hurt. Undeniably so.

His body occasionally twitched involuntarily at the pain coursing through him. He felt the bruises appearing on his skin, the cuts that were so deep, some of them, that they would have killed an ordinary person immediately. The freshest mark was the bite on his cheek, caused minutes ago by the Heylin witch that he loathed so much.

If this wasn't proof that she had once held feelings for him, then he didn't know what was. He couldn't help but wonder, if he had returned those feelings to Wuya, would she have ever betrayed him?

Yes, he assumed. For power and shen gong wu, she would betray anyone - those were her only true loyalties.

The bean came forward and Chase raised his head as well as he could. It hurt, badly, but he wasn't going to hang his head in pain instead of facing his enemy - it was a sign of weakness, helplessness, everything he now was and wanted to deny.

Hannibal was getting more and more agitated by the minute.

Why wasn't he dead? By now the pain should have caused him to give up his life - this was all set up so just that could happen!

The reality of it all hit Hannibal hard: Chase wouldn't give up. No matter how much pain there was, the dragon was too proud and too stubborn to give in.

Chase Young would not kill himself.

So that meant that he would just have to do it himself.

With a sudden lunge forward, a ferocious punch struck the dragon in the gut, causing him to cough. Hannibal pulled back and then threw another punch, this one hitting Chase right on the jaw. His next attack wasn't physical; he pulled out the Thorn Of Thunderbolt and sent a bolt of lightning in the direction of the dragon's chest. Chase let out what was presumably an involuntary cry of agony, but that was his only reaction.

The dragon still did not give up.

Hannibal cried out in anger and cut Chase Young down from the chains using the Thorn Of Thunderbolt. The dragon fell to the floor and landed hard on his side - it was disgusting how he curled away from the pain, around his swollen stomach. Pathetic. Disgusting.

Hannibal closed the door of the cage, sealing himself inside along with Chase Young, and he smirked at the crumpled, half dead form of the warrior on the floor before him.

"Here's how this is gonna work, Chase" he said, his sadistic smile on his face like a stamp. "We're gonna fight. I win, you're dead. You win, I release you."

This would have gotten a response from Chase, had Chase not known that he needed his valuable, severely limited energy. And it was not a good deal - Hannibal was as strong as ever and high on the adrenaline rush of finally being able to kill his oldest enemy, and he himself was weakened and could barely muster the strength to raise his arms, much less fight a battle.

And yet, he was not going to just give in, throw in the towel, and let Hannibal win by forfeit.

No. He was going to fight.

Pushing himself to his feet shakily, Chase noticed that the cage was closed and most likely locked, and so he could still not transform or teleport or use his powers. He was relying solely on his martial arts skills - normally not a problem, but now completely a different issue. He had no strength or stamina. This was a fight that was lost before it started.

But that didn't mean it wouldn't start.

Chase gulped in air as he felt the movement of the thing inside him, not kicking him sharply - thankfully - but moving gently as if worried.

Part of him wanting to tell Hannibal that if he was going to kill him anyway, he might as well get the damn thing killed first so he could at last feel no movement inside his stomach.

And another part of him wanted to tell Hannibal that even if he had to die, he was to let the thing live.

It didn't matter. He knew already that the thing's - the child's - fate would be the same as his.

He knew this even as he lunged at Hannibal Bean, as he was thrown to the floor and felt a crushing blow fall on his chest, even as he got back up and continued fighting a hopeless battle …

/

"Chase's thoughts are getting louder!" Raimundo suddenly gasped. "He's fighting Hannibal!"

"He's fighting!" Jack shouted.

"I thought you said he was dying" Kimiko muttered.

"He is!"

The four monks and Jack began to run down the path, Raimundo clutching the Mind Reader Conch as he listened to the thoughts of Chase Young. The dragon's thoughts were full of agony and pain and conflict and hate, and they were loud. That could mean only that they were very close now to him.

"Just through there!" Clay shouted, and they all stood back a little to allow the Dragon-Of-Earth-in-training to use his earth skills to bust a hole in the wall, to enable them to go in and free Chase.

But they suffered an interruption.

"Not so fast!"

And standing in front of the wall, straight in their path, smirking evilly at them, was Wuya …

Hazeru - A half-dead Chase fighting Hannibal ...

Hera - And the monks busy with Wuya ...

Hazeru - Things don't look good for them.

Hera - R&R please.


	8. Chapter 7  A Fight On Two Sides

Hazeru - Meant to upload this yesterday, must've forgot -.-' Sorry, guys.

Hera - Anyways, enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Chapter 7

A Fight On Two Sides

"Eye Of Dashi!" Kimiko shouted, shooting the beam that the shen gong wu emitted straight at the red haired Heylin witch.

With little more than an unimpressed chuckle, Wuya blocked the attack with only her hand, and sent it flying straight back at the Dragon-Of-Fire-in-training. The black haired girl's face became a momentary mask of shock before she gathered up her wits and protected herself using her own element. Next to her, her friends - the three other Xiaolin monks - ducked out of the way, all silently. Jack Spicer shrieked and dived out of the way - the cowardly Jack was the only one Wuya had ever really known, and he never failed to irritate her. It was a talent, she was certain.

The monks, however, where even more irritating, because they actually put up a fight.

Raimundo - how he'd ever become their leader was beyond the old witch - was the one to initiate the fighting. The green eyed boy lunged at the witch with whom he had once partnered in evil with, aiming to punch her guts, but Wuya moved out of the way at the opportune moment, causing Raimundo to fly past her and into a rock. Clay came next, but his attack was even less useful: not only did Wuya suffer no damage, he ended up sprawled on the floor a few metres away. The little cheese ball, Omi, went for her next, with somewhat more knowledge of her fighting style. Despite being so small, his powerful kick was enough to wind the old witch, but it wasn't enough to stop her, and she sent him flying backwards, straight into Kimiko, who had been preparing to attack herself.

Four Xiaolin monks down and one whining albino to go. Wuya grinned slyly at Jack Spicer.

"Don't try it" Jack threatened, and Wuya couldn't resist laughing hysterically.

Jack Spicer was threatening her - or at least, he was trying to. That was just priceless. Or perhaps it was just sad.

Wuya jumped forward and used nought but her feet and hands to send Jack to the ground in a whimpering mess, tears already falling from the harsh blows to his tender skin. Which word, Wuya wondered, suited Jack Spicer more, pathetic or cowardly?

Hmm … pathetic. Yes.

Wuya began to gloat - it was something she took a bit of pleasure in doing - but was interrupted when a tough punch to the back sent her spiralling into a wall. Gathering her composure took only a moment, and Wuya glared at her attacker.

"Had enough?" Omi grinned.

"You wish, cheddar head" Wuya hissed, and she lunged forward, grabbing the big headed boy by his shoulders and tossing him into the air. His scream only intensified when she kicked him on his path back down to the ground, and sent him flying across the room once again.

The Heylin witch grinned, and was rewarded for her cockiness by being tackled to the ground by a none-too-pleased Raimundo.

"Let's go, Wuya" he growled, and he brought his knee up, straight into her chest.

And before Wuya knew it, the other three monks were behind him, ready to fight with him and with each other, and Wuya had lost the upper hand.

/

All around him, on his skin, inside his body; it was there. It got worse with each blow he took, with the force of impact each time he crashed into the solid magical walls of the cage. Worse with every gash that cut into his skin, with the sting of the blood flowing out of seeping wounds.

Pain.

It was something that Chase Young wasn't entirely familiar with, at least not physically. He had, most likely, more emotional pain built up inside than a normal person would ever have, even if he didn't acknowledge it. But his martial arts skills had prevented him from having to ever get used to large amounts of intense physical pain. He rarely lost an actual fight, and he knew that there were reasons for that - not only were his skills in tai chi outstanding, but most people freaked out completely when suddenly faced with a huge dragon with sharp teeth and claws.

Pain wasn't as familiar to Chase as he had imagined it might be, and he could never have imagined just how much it truly hurt. There was something in him - the sheer intensity of the pain - that made him want to keel over and give in, to beg Hannibal Bean to just hurry up and finish him off, because he was dying anyway. But there was more of him that said it was not an option, no matter what. He would not beg that loathsome bean for anything, especially his own death. He would not give in.

After all, he was fighting for more than just himself.

And that was new as well. He suddenly felt - for the first time in a little over eight months - that he had an obligation to the thing inside him. He didn't have to care about it or want it, but he had it. It was his. And that meant he had to protect it.

Suddenly, there was a need to protect it. There was a feeling that no matter what pains he suffered, he had to get away, because of the things that would happen to 'it' if he didn't.

The … baby.

And it hit Chase right there. And it hit him hard.

The thing inside him was more than a _thing_. It was more than a mistake. It was more than just something that was his own.

It was a whole new being. One that he had created. Well, technically he and that idiot Jack Spicer, but technicalities didn't matter right now. It was something - some_one_, dammit - that Chase had created himself, that lived inside him.

That depended entirely on him. Someone who would follow his every lead, whom he could teach everything he knew, who would understand his evil desires and build on them …

His own.

Chase blocked the next punch Hannibal threw at him.

"You think … I'll give up … but I won't" he spat at the enemy, and Hannibal growled.

The cage walls reacted when the heavily pregnant body of Chase Young crashed into them, and again when Hannibal Bean lunged for his enemy, missing him by mere inches as the dragon rolled out of the way.

/

_Crash._

_Bang._

_Crash. _

Angry eyes opened to meet with four fists, simultaneously going for her, too quickly for her to move out of the way.

Another thundering noise pounded into their ears as the ancient Heylin witch collided roughly with a massive rock. Wuya lay on the rock in what looked to be a thoroughly uncomfortable position, just about passed out. But to be certain - and also so she didn't break her back on the rock's sharpness - Raimundo used his element to send her flying off into the nearest wall.

Wuya collapsed to the ground, defeated and barely moving.

The four monks stood together, a united force, and nodded their heads once in satisfaction. The old witch would not be bothering them again for a while.

Somewhere in the midst of their silent celebrations, Jack Spicer crawled out from behind the rock where he'd been hiding.

"Way to go, Xiaolin losers!" he grinned, genuinely pleased despite his rather unsatisfactory choice of words.

The four monks glared at him, Kimiko raising her hand to strike him but being restrained by Raimundo.

"We've gotta get to Chase" he reminded her, and the girl lowered her hand.

The leader of their small team raised the Mind Reader Conch once again, listened for a minute and then turned to Clay.

"Through there!" he said, pointing at a thick wall.

The others once again moved out of the way - Jack Spicer diving behind the three of them - as Clay moved forward and gathered his elemental powers.

Raimundo did not tell the others that he had not only heard Chase's thoughts, that he had also heard the thoughts of Hannibal Bean. He didn't tell them, either, how faint Chase's thoughts were, despite being so close - it was like his life was slipping away little by little.

Of course, that was probably the case. He was fighting Hannibal, Raimundo knew that much.

Raimundo glanced down at Omi, who was staring at Clay with determination. The leader of the monks bit his lip, wondering how Omi would take it if they were too late. How Jack Spicer would take it, though he cared about Jack somewhat less.

And then, he was brought out of the his thoughts, when the earth in front of him split the wall in two, and the scene before them met his eyes …

Hazeru - What have they seen? What's happened to Chase?

Hera - At least he's finally started to recognise the baby as an actual child. R&R please.


	9. Chapter 8  You've Taken It Too Far

Hazeru - Sorry for the bit of a wait, here's the next chapter.

Hera - Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Chapter 8

You've Taken It Too Far

When a person enters a room, the first thing that catches their senses is, naturally, what they see. They measure the light in a room, the levels of darkness and their basic surroundings. Normally, they see first and then their other senses kick in.

But when the wall broke down and the four Xiaolin monks, accompanied by Jack Spicer, the first thing that they registered, with their sense of smell, was the heavy stench of blood in the room.

Closer inspection let them see the masses of the red liquid pooling at different points of the room, though all inside a cage made of dark magic. And inside that cage were two figures, one unharmed and laughing, one covered in blood - his own - unmoving.

Jack let out his classic girlish squeal as he saw his secret lover, Chase Young, look up at them from the puddle of his own blood - so near death, it seemed, and still the dragon could scowl at him.

The reactions of the four monks were in silence.

Chase Young was a proud enemy of theirs. For years, he had been the one, alongside Wuya and Hannibal Bean, perhaps, who they had held some fear for. And then, he had 'disappeared', and suddenly they had done so much better in their fight against evil. Seeing that he was there, had been there the whole time, was a bit irritating, if they were honest. It meant that the threat he brought remained. When they had seen him again, he had been pregnant, heavily pregnant, and no longer carried the aura of intimidation that they had come to associate with him. However, he had been far from harmless.

And now, they saw him like this. Crumpled, broken, bloody … dying. It surprised them greatly, and yet it angered them even more. Chase hadn't been attacking anyone or doing anything to cause harm or threat …

Why was he being attacked, and so brutally?

That was when their eyes fell on the second figure in the room - the one who was standing tall, standing proud, laughing - and they realised that it was Hannibal Bean.

Hannibal Bean had gone too far. Just plain too far.

It was one thing to attack an enemy. It was even more or less acceptable - for evil doers - to attack a weakened enemy. But the one who attacked a pregnant person, man or woman, had taken it too far.

Raimundo stared at the beaten down figure and the thought crossed his mind - as, of course, it crossed all their minds - that with all this pain, all the damage done, it was possible that the unborn child Chase was carrying had not survived. He wondered if the dragon would care if the baby had been destroyed, if it had been at all. Perhaps it had survived, there was no way to tell yet.

But Raimundo, along with his fellow monks, felt the anger slowly rising in his system.

He did not like Chase. Chase was just another enemy to him. Unlike Omi, he had no moral obligation to the dragon warrior.

But that did not stop him being angry. Chase did not deserve this. Nobody deserved this.

"Hannibal Bean" he growled, and the bean turned around to finally acknowledge them.

/

Their looks burned, almost as badly as the open wounds on his skin. Their eyes - which he refused to meet - carried the most disgusting of emotions. Sympathy, pity, anger on his behalf … it sickened him.

"Get … out!" he growled, trying to sound threatening, but his voice betrayed him and the words sounded more like whimpers. Chase closed his eyes in defeat - it was too much. The pain, it was too much, and it was slowly consuming him.

Not to mention the new pain he was feeling, the pain that was coming from inside his own body. It was the 'thing' inside him, he knew, but he was unsure what the pain meant. Did it mean that the child had died inside him?

Why did the thought anger him so badly?

Chase wasn't sure what was worse: the pain, or the humiliation of having to be saved by the monks and the pitiful Jack Spicer. He'd never recover from the latter, if he even survived the first.

Hannibal Bean had, thus far, failed to kill him. But that didn't mean it was over.

Because, even now, the foul vegetable had realised that he was caught, and had lunged at Chase once again, determined to finish the job.

/

The blow that would have landed in his worst enemy's gut never managed to hit before he was knocked off balance and his punch hit the ground instead of his target.

Hannibal turned around to face a furious Xiaolin warrior, the small one. Before he could even think of what he was going to do to him, Omi had the bean pressed against the ground, the small, sharp stones cutting into his flesh.

When had they broken into the damn cage!

What Hannibal didn't know was that, after they had seen what was happening, the Xiaolin monks had used their combined forces to successfully disable the magic cage and cause it to disappear entirely. Their abilities were becoming more and more advanced, and they could do it without losing too much of their vital energy.

They had got to Chase and Hannibal. Now all they had to do was end it.

As Hannibal Bean kicked Omi off him and got back up, Raimundo and Kimiko rushed at the vegetable, while Clay caught Omi to prevent him being harmed.

Raimundo used his wind element to throw Hannibal into a wall of sharp rocks, while Kimiko physically attacked him. Hannibal suffered a punch to the face and a harsh kick to the guts before he managed to throw the girl off him.

Kimiko knew that the fall would've been hard - had Raimundo not caught her before she hit the ground. He set her on her feet quickly and attacked Hannibal, along with Omi and Clay, and it took only a moment to steady herself before Kimiko was attacking him as well.

A short distance from the monks, Dojo could barely make out what was going on. Every so often, a monk was tossed out of the brawl by Hannibal Bean, only to jump straight back in and continue with their attack. From what he could make out, the Xiaolin warriors were winning.

Dojo looked to his side, where Jack Spicer had been standing just a moment ago, and realised that he was no longer there.

Instead he was sitting by Chase's side.

/

"Chase! Are you okay?"

Chase raised one eyebrow at his lover/partner/usual source of irritation. What sort of question was that to ask? He was lying in a pool of his own damn blood! His skin felt like it was on fire from the multitude of cuts and bruises he had received from his worst enemy, and something was going on with the child inside him.

It was alive, he knew that much. He could feel its movement now that he was focusing a little better. Movements that were sharp and hurt more than usual. He didn't know what was happening with it, but it had better stop it. He was in enough pain already.

Chase looked up at Jack and then closed his eyes. It was one thing to know that he was, at present, weaker than Hannibal Bean, or even the monks, even _Wuya_. But to know that he could be defeated right now by _Jack Spicer _… that stung.

Nevertheless, he nodded once - ignoring that it used valuable, limited energy - to let the evil boy genius know that he was okay.

Well, at least that he could survive. He would never give that dreaded bean the satisfaction of knowing that he killed Chase Young. It just wasn't going to happen.

Chase glanced over as he heard the ferocious shout come from the leader of the Xiaolin monks.

"Wudai Orion Formation!"

And suddenly Hannibal was lying against a wall and the monks were each covered with a shroud of black, their own element colours lacing their outlines. When Hannibal neglected to move, the regained their natural appearances, and rushed towards Chase and Jack.

Clay and Kimiko stood fairly still, saying nothing. Dojo joined them, perching on Clay's shoulders. Omi came right over and placed one hand on Chase's shoulder, Raimundo crouched behind Omi, defensive, as if waiting for Chase to strike him.

"Chase Young, are you drastically injured?" Omi gasped. "Are you able to walk?"

Chase nodded again and then glanced over to take in the sight of his defeated enemy - only to notice that he was not lying on the ground as he had been a mere moment ago.

Chase wanted, he really wanted, to tell the monks, but he couldn't summon the energy. He hated himself for his own weakness; Hannibal Bean was getting away!

Only he wasn't.

He was behind the monks, behind Jack, behind Dojo. All of whom were facing Chase. He was the only one who could see the disgusting individual.

So he was the only one who could see the punch that Hannibal was going to throw, the one that would, inevitably, hit Jack Spicer right on his spine.

A hit that powerful to a boy that weak could be fatal. If it landed correctly and broke Jack's spine …

Unbearable hatred and rage consumed Chase as he raised his weak form up and landed a solid punch squarely in the large bean's face and sent him flying back.

Then he stood on his feet, shaking, trying not to crumple. He was held up only by Clay and Raimundo on either side of him, supporting him so that he didn't fall. It was necessary, if humiliating.

Kimiko and Omi both tried to get to Hannibal, but neither one was fast enough, as the injured - physically hurt and suffering from a huge dent to his ego - bean jumped onto his faithful bird Ying-Yang. They both made a dive for him, but he evaded them and the bird flew out the way the monks had come in, carrying with him Chase's worst enemy.

/

After Hannibal's departure, it took only a moment before the great Chase Young gasped in pain and fell to his knees. All the others dropped to their knees along with him, all begging to know if he was alright and what was wrong.

"Are you okay?"

"What did that good for nothing nasty vegetable do to you, partner?"

"What's going on?"

"Chase Young, you have to survive!"

"Chase …"

The last voice was a mere whisper, laced with fear and also with love. It belonged, of course, to Jack.

But Chase could take none of it in as he finally realised what was truly happening.

The pain inside him was not because of the fight. It had been, from the start, inevitable. It happened with every course, as was natural.

It just hurt more because he wasn't in good shape now.

Chase Young looked up at them, his face a perfect blank mask, letting no emotions be revealed.

And as his lips parted, Chase called on all the remaining strength in his body so that he could speak in his usual tone and so his monumental words would be clear.

No expression came to his face and no unordinary tone was noticeable as Chase spoke:

"I'm having the baby."

Hazeru - Yay! Hannibal's been defeated!

Hera - But Chase is about to be in a world of hurt.

Hazeru - Poor guy.

Hera - R&R please.


	10. Chapter 9  Long Journey

Hazeru - Sorry for the long wait, I've finally written the next chapter.

Hera - Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Chapter 9

Long Journey

"_Now_?"

The high pitched shriek could most likely be heard from the surface; it certainly scattered all the bugs and insects that resided underground.

Despite himself, Chase winced as Jack's loud scream caused his sensitive ears pain, adding the pain of being half dead in body and also, he had just realised, the pain of the early stages of labour.

He didn't want to admit, even to himself, that he was worried. He was about to enter a world of agony in very poor shape. He had no idea what to expect when it came to the actual birth - all he knew was that it was most likely only possible to technically give birth while in his dragon form.

Kimiko slapped Jack on the cheek - hard - and it effectively shut him up, and knocked him down. She turned to Chase, her face set firmly.

"Are you sure?"

"Do I look like I'm joking?" he hissed back, closing his eyes tightly against the waves of pain coming from all areas of his body.

Realisation crashed over the other five people still in the cavern, all of them paling visibly - even Jack, which would have been scary in and of itself their attention not been otherwise occupied.

Kimiko backed away a few paces, her face shocked and her eyes alight with fear. Clay and Raimundo just looked at each other helplessly; how could they help with this? Omi, meanwhile, ran around the room in circles, screaming gibberish at the top of his lungs in fear.

Jack was having his own panic attack, crouched next to the dragon lord and practically hyperventilating. His shocked face was a split between a fish out of water and a deer caught in headlights.

Raimundo shook his head as if to clear his mind, took a deep breath and then stepped forward.

"Hey, Clay, gimme a hand" he said - an order - as he draped Chase's left arm around his shoulders, ignoring the dragon's glare. "We have to get him back home."

The screaming stopped and everyone - excluding the agonised dragon - looked at the leader of the Xiaolin monks. Raimundo's words rang with authority, and in them they all saw commitment and logic.

The monks _would _keep their promise to help Chase when he needed it, while he was vulnerable. They would not fail.

With a nod of acceptance and agreement, Clay stepped forward and draped Chase's other arm over his own shoulders. Kimiko, meanwhile, was helping the petrified Jack get to his feet and Omi, with a nod from the team leader, began to lead the way out of the cavern.

/

Trying to manoeuvre the half dead figure up the pathways that they had journeyed down was proving very difficult for the Xiaolin dragons. Every few minutes the pain would build up and the man would freeze until it passed; even the great Chase Young realised that trying to continue on through a pain would be impossible given his current state. He was beaten, bloodied, and a bit more than half dead. Anyone else would have perished long ago, but he hadn't been that weak - maybe, one day, he'd be able to take some pride in that knowledge. For now, though, he was just humiliated.

He'd been practically killed by his oldest rival and damn well molested by the witch he loathed so much, not that he knew where she'd disappeared to. His mortifying relationship with the weakling Jack Spicer was out in the open; another blow to his reputation as top evil threat to the side of good. And now, here he was, unable to walk on his own and supported by his lover and the Xiaolin monks, about to give birth to a child he, as a male, should never have been able to carry.

The monks were guiding him mainly in silence - save for Omi, who was loudly chanting encouraging words that Chase detested - and Jack Spicer was proclaiming, in a high and panicky voice, that everything was going to be fine. Chase wondered if he was even fooling himself. The dragon lord was in terrible shape and in labour, and he shuddered just thinking about his predicament.

The group trudged on slowly for a further few minutes before something - a most unwelcome sight - met their eyes.

It was Hannibal Bean, getting away on the Ying-Yang bird at a quick pace.

The bird stopped in mid air and hovered there as Hannibal commanded it to do so. The monks glared at the disgusting vegetable, and even Chase found enough strength to glare up at him, his reptile eyes narrowing with sheer loathing and deep, true hatred.

"Enjoy the pain, Chase, it'll be the last thing you ever feel!" the bean growled.

Evidently, he was none too happy about Chase still being alive, but had found comfort in the knowledge that, with him being in such a nasty condition to begin with, Chase had a high chance of not surviving the birth.

"Hannibal Bean, surrender or prepare for a most humiliating defeat!"

With his battle cry, Omi lunged forward at his loathed enemy, but the bird was too quick and was already in flight, getting Hannibal Bean out of the path of danger and was instantly flying away in the opposite direction, the bean's loud grumbling still vaguely audible.

The group watched him leave, and Raimundo snarled. Wuya had seemingly disappeared, and now Hannibal Bean was getting away, too!

"We've gotta go after him! We can't let him get away!"

"But Raimundo …" Omi grabbed Raimundo's arm to stop him from chasing the bean. "Our paths will cross again all too soon. And we must honour our Xiaolin word."

Raimundo hesitated, still staring after the bean angrily, furious at his easy departure but he still nodded in agreement, and even smiled down at his short friend. He had so much added pressure on him because he was the leader; it was nice to be able to just agree for once. He knew that Omi was right.

Their Xiaolin word to Chase Young was still in effect, and at the present time the dragon was so badly damaged that he couldn't even argue when Raimundo and Clay began half carrying him up towards his lair.

/

Taking the paths down to find Chase with Hannibal had taken half the time that it did for them all to make the same journey back up. Not only was it uphill and therefore naturally harder on their bodies, but every time a fierce 'contraction' raged through the dragon lord's body, they had to either stop entirely or walk so slowly that they might as well have been stationary.

Chase's labour was progressing quickly, if what he told them was to be believed, and the monks found themselves wondering whether or not they should stay once he was safely in his home. On one hand they should probably be there for him, but on the other hand, Jack would be there and Chase wanted them, no doubt, to leave him alone. After a brief, quiet discussion, Kimiko and Omi decided that they'd act depending on what state Chase was in, and also depending on whether or not Jack Spicer was fit to take care of an agonised, angry dragon.

It was dark when they finally reached the surface, and Dojo grinned up at the night as he smiled at his friends, noticing that Chase was worse shape than they'd originally thought; the dim caves had lessened the bruising on his body and the blood looked even worse in the moonlight.

Jack unwillingly let out one choked sob as he looked at his lover's face, bruised under the chin and a weeping gash - marks that could only be teeth marks - crusting over with dried blood. Normally, Chase looked gorgeous under the moonlight - privately, Jack thought that his pregnant lover was radiant when he was bathed in the moon's beams, not that he'd ever dare tell Chase that much for fear of being decapitated. Now, though, he just looked sad. There was a highly attractive man underneath all that blood, but he was hardly visible now.

Dojo was calmer about Chase's being in labour than any of his human companions, and he the thing that unnerved the small dragon most about going into Chase's lair was actually the jungle cats that crowded around them as they entered. One look from their master had them all backing away, and the monks and Jack were able to move Chase easily enough to a bedchamber. Not his own, Jack was aware, but he didn't say as much. Evidently Chase didn't want blood and god-knows-what to get on their pristine bed sheets.

Their path to the bedchamber was interrupted once only.

On the way there, they spotted a flash of black and red disappearing round the corner, and as Omi and Kimiko chased the unnamed source of the movement, they realised that it was none other than the vile Heylin witch they had previously defeated.

"Wuya!" Kimiko gasped, and she made a dive for the fifteen hundred year old witch.

"Serpent's Tail!" Wuya yelled, and her form turned ghostly - in her human shape, being ghostly looked very strange indeed - and she travelled through the wall of Chase's lair, out into the world where she was making her escape.

"How'd she get the Serpent's Tail!" Kimiko mused.

"We left it here when we went after Chase" Raimundo sighed. "Wuya must've been snooping around for wu. Looks like she found some."

Omi stopped all further conversation as he opened the dictated door and helped usher Chase inside - not an easy task; since he was home and basically safe, Chase was getting more of his willpower back and was beginning to try to rid himself of the monks that coddled him.

Nevertheless, they helped him into the room and he half lay down on the bed, leaning his shoulders against the headboard as Jack stuck his head out the door and yelled for one of the cats to bring them some water and rags. To clean the blood and cuts, Chase guessed.

"Spicer …" he whispered, and his lover hurried over to him.

Chase glared at him as another contraction wracked his body.

"I will kill you for this!" he growled, and as the pain became worse he threw his fist up with all the strength he could muster - not his usual, of course - and felt pleasure grow in him as his knuckles connected with Jack's face, sending the boy flying straight off the ground and back into a wall.

Clay went over and poked Spicer's face before turning back to the others.

"He's out colder than a flower that just went ten rounds with a boulder!"

Raimundo raised an eyebrow, not even sure that the cowboy's statement made sense, but he passed no comment on it. Instead he turned to Chase.

"You can't do this on your own" he said reluctantly.

He didn't want to be here. He really, _really _didn't want to stay here while one of his greatest enemies gave birth to his sure-to-be-evil offspring.

But he was bound by his Xiaolin word, and no matter how much he loathed the situation or how much Chase Young refused his help, he had to stay here. The other three dragons-to-be were in the same boat as he was.

Only Omi seemed not reluctant to leave. He truly felt that he owed Chase Young many favours; staying and helping him through this would pay off all those debts in one act.

"Dojo, take Jack out into the front chambers" Raimundo said.

"Keep an eye on him in case he wakes up" Kimiko added.

With a nod, Dojo grabbed the trademark black jacket that was always worn by Jack Spicer and tugged him out of the room, grumbling all the way about how heavy the skinny boy was to such a small dragon.

And the four Xiaolin monks turned back to Chase Young, who lay on the bed with his face the image of pure pain, glaring at the four people in the room who he really wished would just leave him alone.

He was disgusted with them, that they would stay here while he was in this mortifying state.

He was disgusted with his lover, who had been so easily knocked out by his hand.

He was disgusted with his two enemies, who had made a mockery out of him and hurt his reputation beyond repair.

But most of all, he was disgusted with himself and his present condition.

And as another wave of pain, another contraction, ran through his body with strong force, he realised that this process was incredibly dangerous, deadly even.

And also that there was nothing he could do except let it happen as it was supposed to …

Hazeru - Poor Chase :(

Hera - We wanted to have Jack out of the picture - storyline needs it - but we didn't want to have him just faint.

Hazeru - And more importantly, Hannibal and Wuya got away ...

Hera - No flames. Please R&R


	11. Chapter 10  Pain And Maternal Instincts

Hazeru - I am SOOOO sorry for the long wait!

Hera - Hope you enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Chapter 10

Pain, Fear And Maternal Instincts

It took perhaps half an hour for both the dragon presently engaged in the agonising process of childbirth and the attending Xiaolin monks to come to the conclusion that although the actual final birth would have to take place with Chase in his dragon form – since the necessary birth canal had formed correctly in the reptilian form only – the contractions were easier for him to deal with while in his human form. It was a relief to the monks; he was less intimidating as a human any day. Although he couldn't really be called intimidating now, while lying on the bed, writhing in pain.

The room was filled to the brim with an uncomfortable silence, periodically broken by Chase's gasps and occasional moans of sheer agony. None of the monks had any idea what to do or what to expect, and only Omi was genuinely concerned for the dragon warlord. Technically, the other three were there for the sole reason that they were bound by their Xiaolin word and none of them were willing to dishonour themselves by breaking it.

Omi, however, seemed honestly eager to be there. He did feel that his moral debts to Chase – that he should be repaid for teaching Omi so many useful techniques – could all be paid back in this single act of staying with the man in his time of need.

Particularly since his weak lover, Jack Spicer, self proclaimed evil boy genius, was currently lying in the main chamber, unconscious. Dojo had been set to watch over him and keep an eye on him while the monks all stayed with Chase.

Now, Chase scrunched up his eyes in a futile attempt to stand strong against the overwhelming pain of the birth, as another fierce contraction wracked his damaged frame. A rough gasp left his throat, but there was no other noise to signify that he was in pain, even though it was so obvious.

Chase angrily batted away Kimiko's hand as the only female warrior attempted to use a wet cloth to dab away the crusted blood on his cheek, left over from Wuya's bite. The girl frowned at him but continued to try anyway, holding his arm down with one hand and using her other to scrape the blood away with the cloth. Chase snarled at her.

"Chill, dragon dude, she's only trying to help!" Raimundo protested, frowning as he leant against the wall adjacent to the bed. He was answered only by another snarl.

The Xiaolin monks had, much to Chase's annoyance, already fallen into a routine. Raimundo and Clay were leaning against the wall, getting new rags or water for Kimiko whenever she called for them, but otherwise not doing anything. It seemed that the whole process of childbirth was somewhat terrifying to them. Kimiko, on the other hand, had unexpectedly revealed that she actually had a maternal side to her, and the girl sat next to Chase and tried to clean up his cuts while she whispered encouraging or soothing words to him, barely batting an eyelid whenever he yelled at her. The other monks, and Chase, wondered how she was getting rid of her temper so easily. Surely she'd go mad later and destroy a few obstacle courses to vent off her rage.

It was Omi, though, who surprised them most. They had almost expected him to have fainted, or at least to be joining Clay and Raimundo in being terrified. But he was actually almost as calm as Kimiko appeared to be. Omi was standing on the bed next to Chase, encouraging him through it and not reacting when he was told to shut up and go away.

To Chase, it was all the same: just one big annoyance.

/

Under different circumstances, Chase Young, fearless master of tai chi, would have been chasing the monks out of his home and kicking their butts just for good measure. Now, though, he was humiliated with himself for how he was acting.

Time was passing, all too slowly, and by his count he was about three and half – three and three quarters, maybe? – hours into the labour. Judging by what information the monks had been able to obtain from Dojo – back now in the front chamber cowering away from the jungle cats as he watched over the still unconscious Jack Spicer – male dragons who actually managed to conceive and carry to term a child, which was an extremely rare thing for most, usually stayed in labour for around four or five hours before the child actually passed through the birth canal. Chase found that part the most humiliating part of all about this process, that there was such a thing in his body right now, though formed and visible only in his reptilian form; it was impossible for the human male to actually give birth, but not for a dragon.

But then again, perhaps the part of this that was truly humiliating was the fact that he was now coming to terms with new emotions that were brewing inside him, emotions he didn't recognise or like. There was this strong urge to give birth to the child, not just to get rid of the pain but so that the child could be beside him. He had feelings inside now that were telling him to get the monks out of the room before they could cause the child any harm or try to take it over to the side of good.

Chase Young was angry with himself for having these feelings at all, even though he was aware they were almost certainly developed from hormones awakened by the pregnancy that he didn't even know he possessed.

For the love of Dashi, he would develop a motherly side if he didn't quickly quieten these ridiculously embarrassing emotions! The very thought made his blood boil!

/

Kimiko smiled sympathetically – suppressing her own rage was turning out to be much easier than she had initially expected, considering her quick temper – as she rubbed an anaesthetic wipe over Chase's neck, getting rid of the blood that was caked on a cut there, and hopefully lowering the chances of infection. This was the best that they could do for the time being, until the ordeal was over.

Chase didn't even appear to care any longer whether or not they saw him in this state; the pain was obviously too much. He now let out louder, longer moans of pain, managing to stop himself less frequently, under the pressure of the intense pain he was feeling throughout his body.

Kimiko's heart clenched and, observing his pains, she made a vow to never, ever have children herself. Chase looked likely to die any moment now and to know all too well that the pain was only going to get worse before it actually began to get better was a terrifying mental image. Could he even survive that?

Kimiko did not like Chase Young. She never had, and she was here because she bound by her Xiaolin word, not because she actually wanted to take care of the dragon. However, that didn't mean that she had no heart. She did feel sorry for him – watching his normally placid face twist and contort with sheer agony was enough to make her want to look after him, even though she knew elsewhere in her mind that as soon as this was all over, they'd be back to being enemies who would meet only to fight.

She already knew that it would be too much to ask for that they might be friendly afterwards. It just wasn't going to happen.

But for whatever reason – part of it mainly being that they were bound by their word – the Xiaolin monks all stayed regardless of this knowledge.

/

Breathing heavily, Chase Young fell back against the pillows, closing his eyes. He was panting heavily even though he had stopped moving.

_I can't do this_, he thought, though he didn't say a word aloud.

The four monks in the room – he wished they would leave – all looked at him strangely. It was almost like they could tell that he had given up and was just about ready to let the pain have him.

Kimiko looked at him with pity in her eyes, and at that moment he loathed her over the over three, because he didn't want, or need, anyone's pity. To want or need the pity of another was, in the eyes of Chase Young, truly pathetic and a sign of definite weakness.

Even Raimundo and Clay were now standing much closer than they had been, Clay hovering awkwardly and Raimundo leaning over Kimiko's shoulder to look at the dragon with worried eyes.

Omi, though, took it a step further. Ignoring the odd glances his friends gave him at the action, Omi grabbed Chase's hand and held onto it, tightening his grip slightly when the dragon subconsciously tried to pull his hand free.

"Chase Young, you once told me that it is not strongest warrior who wins, but the one with the strongest will" he said sincerely, looking Chase right in the eye and holding his hand tightly. "You are one of the greatest warriors of all time, and I know that your will is stronger still. You will not give in, Chase Young!"

A silence fell over the room, and everyone stared at Omi, who didn't look away from Chase.

Then, something extraordinary happened, making Raimundo wish that he had a camera.

Chase smiled. His features softened and he smiled at Omi, before the pain took over him again and he gasped in pain. A relieved smile crossed Omi's face as he fell back into his routine of encouraging the warlord.

Kimiko remained frozen momentarily before she too regained her composure and began dabbing at the cuts and bruises that were visible on Chase's neck and face, and wherever his clothes had been torn and his armour ripped off. Clay backed off to lean against the wall again.

Raimundo, however, sat down on the bed and offered Chase a smile as genuine as he could make it, as he whispered softly, "you can do it, Chase."

Despite the pain, Chase smirked a little at the leader of the Xiaolin monks. It must have taken a lot of courage, and most likely a dent to his ego, for Raimundo to say that.

Nobody commented about how, throughout the next stage of the labour, Omi was holding Chase's hand between both of his, and the dragon's grip was becoming ever tighter with each new wave of pain that he experienced.

And for the first time since he had met them, Chase Young felt that he might have, in some ways, been wrong about the Xiaolin monks. None of them were the brainless idiots he had once classified them as, and he was only now realising just how strong their potential as a team was.

He began to work with them as they coached him through the labour. His definition of 'work with them' amounted to shouting at them a little less and striking out at them less often, but at least he was making an effort.

His grip on Omi's hand tightened as he felt a stronger, new type of contraction, and Chase realised, grudgingly, that it was almost time.

Hazeru - Next chapter, we'll bring Jack back into the story. Also, next chapter, find out the gender of the baby!

Hera - No flames. Please R&R.


	12. Chapter 11  The Baby

Hazeru - Here's another chapter.

Hera - Hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Chapter 11

The Baby

"Orb Of Tornami!"

A high pitched shriek of shock filled the room as the icy cold water rushed over the face of the now semi-conscious evil boy genius. He instantly recognised the all too familiar voice of the shortest Xiaolin monk, and he angrily opened his eyes to shout abuse at the boy who had just awoken him using the Orb of Tornami.

Jack growled at the four monks, who were standing in a semicircle around him, Raimundo smirking and Kimiko giggling behind her hands, the other two just smiling as they did. And yet, Jack could see that they all had a vague expression of wonder on their faces, and he himself couldn't find anything remarkable about the setting or his appearance.

He looked like he always did. They were all in Chase's palace, which wasn't entirely unusual, and everything looked to be in place, complete with the odd few jungle cats wandering around.

Although Chase was absent...

And suddenly, when he thought properly about his lover, Jack's mind clicked everything into place, and suddenly he realised what was going on. He remembered.

Hannibal Bean nearly killing Chase, his now-not-so-secret lover going into labour, then knocking him out...

Chase was having the baby and he wasn't there!

"_Chase_!" Jack screamed, hitting a note that he, as a male, should no longer have been able to reach. He jumped to his feet and made to run, but a restricting hand placed itself on his shoulder and held him firmly in place.

"Easy, there, partner" Clay said simply. "Just calm down."

"Where's Chase? What happened?"

All the monks exchanged glances amongst themselves before Raimundo, the leader, turned to Jack and stepped forward a couple of steps, motioning for Clay to let go of Jack since the self proclaimed genius seemed to be almost frozen with anticipation.

Raimundo smiled at Jack, though his smile was uneasy and obviously forced.

"He's doing okay, Jack. He's resting."

"But he ..." Jack stopped and gasped. "The baby!"

"The baby's _fine_" Raimundo said, his tone icy, implying that he was none too happy with the entire situation but still willing to keep his Xiaolin word and see it through. Noticing Jack's continuing look of fear, he sighed and went on, "Chase is alright, dude. Omi stayed with him for a while to make sure he was recovering okay."

"Oh yes!" Omi put in helpfully. "Chase Young is going to be perfectly top tip in no time. He is a fearsome warrior!"

The other three shot him disapproving glares but they lasted for only a moment before four pairs of eyes rested on Jack, their gazes a lot softer than the looks they normally gave him.

Clearly they had all been shaken by the circumstances they had all found themselves in.

The five stood in an awkward silence for a few minutes before Jack eventually looked at them, his eyes worried.

"Where's the baby?"

"In the other room. Dojo's keeping an eye on her."

"Why is he looking after ..." But Jack's threat tailed off and his eyes grew suddenly wide. "Her? So ... the baby's a girl?"

The four monks nodding in unison, confirming the fact.

Jack couldn't explain it, but he suddenly felt warm. Not hot, pleasantly warm; spreading through his veins in a tingling sensation.

She. The baby was a girl. He had a daughter.

Jack raised his head again to look at the monks, this time with his face displaying a wide grin.

"Swell. I have to go see her!"

And he made to dash out of the room and into the nearest bedroom where he guessed his daughter was presently residing, but he was once again stopped by the hand of the cowboy.

"What gives!" he complained.

"Jack Spicer, before you go and see your daughter, I think it would be most beneficial for you to first go and speak with Chase Young."

"Why?"

Jack didn't understand. Surely they were giving Chase time to rest and recover, why would he bother him before he went to his waiting daughter?

"See, thing is, Spicer" Raimundo began, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

Luckily for him, Kimiko took over.

"The thing is, you really have to talk to Chase. Something's wrong with him. After she was born, he ... he wouldn't touch her. He wouldn't even look at her."

The words that fell from her lips crushed Jack down like a tonne of bricks. Damn it, he'd been afraid this would happen!

The monks continued to talk, almost all at the one time, but Jack was trying, semi-successfully, to tune them all out. He caught snippets of what they were saying, but his main focus on attention was inside his own mind as he pondered the situation.

Chase had never been happy with the situation. He did not want to have a child, period, and he was even less impressed with the fact that he actually had to carry the child in order to have one at all. He was not happy at all during the pregnancy, and he'd suffered a great deal, both physically and emotionally, at the hands of Hannibal Bean just hours earlier.

Considering that he had never once displayed any affection for the baby during the pregnancy, it didn't seem all that impossible that he wouldn't want to touch her once she was born.

But even so, to not even look at her? His own child? Jack knew that Chase was Heylin, pure evil, but also that he still had a heart. He just reserved it for those select few that he actually cared about and couldn't give a damn about the rest of the world.

Why couldn't he seem to love his own daughter?

Jack straightened up and walked past the monks, heading in the direction of the room in which he knew Chase had given birth to their daughter.

He heard the monks behind him whispering, but he didn't acknowledge them in any way. He could only focus on getting to the bottom of whatever was bothering his lover, no matter what it might take.

/

Jack was genuinely surprised to see that Chase was awake and sitting up in bed – he had expected him to be still asleep. The monks had already told him that the baby was only an hour old, and they had woken him pretty soon after her birth. Omi had stayed with Chase for a short time to ensure that the dragon warlord was recovering properly, but aside from that safety precaution, they had left him alone after the baby was born.

Now, Jack closed the door behind him and walked over to the bed, sitting down next to his lover with rehearsed ease. His hands shook a little, frightened that Chase was going to tear his throat out, but he tried to maintain his cool.

"Spicer, I can feel you shaking. What is it?"

So Chase was alert enough to notice that much even with closed eyes. Evidently he was suffering too badly from the emotional damage to take much notice of the physical, after having had an hour's rest.

"Chase ... I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I ... passed out."

There was no reply, so Jack continued anyway.

"Aren't you happy at all, Chase?" he whispered.

The dragon's eyes rested on him and he bravely met them, twisting his fingers around one another nervously.

"And why should I be happy in the least, Spicer?" Chase hissed. "I have become weak. It will take time for me to fully recover, and my enemies have all seen my weakness."

"Screw them" Jack snorted. "Hannibal Bean's the only thing we have to worry about. The Xiaolin losers won't bother a baby."

"I'm not concerned about them bothering the baby, Spicer. At any rate, they can have her. They are surprisingly fond of infants, even those born of the Heylin."

"She's our daughter. You do know this?"

"I have told you a thousand times: I have no interest in procreating!"

"It doesn't matter now! We have a daughter, we should love her!" Jack burst out.

"I ..." Chase trailed off, and then continued, "I have no time for this."

But Jack had caught what Chase had been going to say before he'd caught himself, and he smiled.

"You can see her properly tomorrow. You'll change your mind."

Chase rolled his eyes, not even bothering to waste energy on an argument with this insect of a lover.

"The monks stayed with you, right?"

Chase nodded once, wondering vaguely why this was the topic Jack had decided to change the subject to.

"Any blackmail?" Jack grinned.

And Chase understood. And for once, he was actually thankful for the idiocy of the boy genius.

He proceeded to tell Jack about how Clay and Raimundo had been pretty much terrified of the whole process of childbirth, how Omi had been encouraging and a general source of annoyance, how Kimiko had displayed a maternal side that nobody was even aware she possessed.

Chase also said that after she left the room – earlier than the boys – he heard crashes, and wondered what it was she was breaking to vent off her rage.

The two spoke quietly for a few more minutes before Jack piped up with another new topic, this one a subject which had to interest Chase whether the dragon liked it or not.

"So, are we official now?"

And Chase could hardly refuse the fact. Everyone who he had been worried about knowing had already found out about their relationship. And with a child in the house who most likely had features inherited from both of them, any idiot would be able to work it out now.

"There is little point to trying to keep a secret that is already out in the open."

Jack took this as a 'yes'.

/

Shortly afterwards, Jack left Chase to rest for the remainder of the night, and he walked down the hallway from which he had came, smiling gently to himself. Chase still had no interest in the baby, but Jack was determined to change that. There was surely a way.

But first, he had to see the baby for himself...

Hazeru - So Chase still isn't exactly happy, and the baby has no name!

Hera - No flames. Please R&R


	13. Chapter 12  The Truce Is Over

Hazeru - I am SOOOOO sorry that it's taken me so long to update. I hope people are still following this ^.^'

Hera - From now on our updates should be more frequent.

Hazeru - Hope you enjoy the chapter, we've made it longer to make up for not updating for so long.

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Chapter 12

The Truce Is Over

The soft words of the four voices he knew so well – voices he normally loathed but now was genuinely pleased to hear – could be heard from a room which he knew to be a spare bedroom; it was where he himself usually slept whenever Chase decided that he could not put up with his company for the night and kicked him out of bed – once, literally.

Following the voices, Jack Spicer found himself staring in awe at the circle of monks, with their trusty 'steed' perched around Clay's shoulders; at any other time, Jack would've sniggered at how freaked out Dojo looked at the very idea of being so close to Chase Young and his many jungle cats. But not now; not when he knew that there was another so much more important person he had to meet for the very first time.

That person, none other than, of course, his own daughter, was presently being held in the arms of the Xiaolin leader. Although her form was not visible, the arrangement of bundle of sheets in Raimundo's arms was unmistakable; he held the child as anyone would cradle a newborn, although Jack couldn't help but notice that she was held loosely instead of to the monk's chest – she was safe but not exactly cuddled.

Jack moved forward slowly, not noticing the way that the other three monks parted to form a straight line without question, allowing Jack instant access to Raimundo and to his baby girl.

The green eyes that the leader of the monks sported fixed upon him icily for a few moments as he approached, but when Jack stood only a foot away from him, Raimundo nonetheless moved the sheets aside a little with one hand – the other arm occupied with holding the child securely – so that the baby's naked form was visible.

A girl, that much was for certain. Perfectly formed by the looks of it, with strong limbs, a round head and a complexion just a touch paler than Chase's – that paling could possibly have come from Jack. Her eyes were closed at present, so he could not see their colour, but he focused for a minute – with a hitch of his breath – on her face, and he could not have seen a clearer resemblance if he had tried. She had that same firm mouth, same perfect nose, same cheekbones, everything; he wondered if Chase had looked exactly like this in infancy, for she was so much like him, there in Raimundo's arms, that it was uncanny. Nobody with two brain cells to rub together could have mistaken her parentage – well, part of it; she did not seem to resemble Jack in any strong way, and this saddened him a little.

Oh well, he thought, it might've spoiled her. He decided that, just this once, he was damn well not going to whine about how unfair it was that all her features seemed to have come from Chase and not from him; just this once, it didn't matter.

Looking at her was magical, he could not doubt it, but it was not quite enough. Wordlessly, he stretched out his arms and, folding the sheet around her so as to cover her nakedness, brought her to his chest; the way he held the baby was more like a cuddle than simply a hold, more loving and in contrast to the wariness of the way Raimundo had handled her – the monk looked honestly relieved to no longer be holding the child.

She felt, Jack had to admit smugly, just right in his arms. Alright, she was heavier than he had imagined, and he had to hold his arm at an uncomfortable angle in order to support her delicate head, but neither bothered him overly. She felt ... right, undeniably so. Foreign, it was true, but right.

Jack was so lost in her little face that he didn't notice the tear that had slipped down his cheek until he felt the tickly sensation as it hung on his chin and he was forced to move his arm to wipe it off. Then, with his eyes pulled from his daughter, he faced the monks, who were standing in organised formation, all with serious expressions on their faces, watching him.

In his defence, Jack did not break eye contact. They stared one another out, he and the monks, until the cowboy, murmuring as if reluctant, offered his hesitant congratulations; the other three nodded in agreement. It was only natural for them to congratulate the new father, even if he was an enemy, but it felt more like a natural thing to say than a genuine emotion.

And it was not long before the four monks left Jack alone.

Their Xiaolin word had been kept; they had protected Chase Young when he had needed it and more, and now that this was accomplished and the pregnancy over forever, they no longer had a truce with he and Jack Spicer. The next time they met, it would be in battle and they would be on opposite sides without a truce to prevent a fight.

And it was all for the best, for good and evil can only coexist up to a point before one becomes the other.

With nods from all the monks, Jack watched them depart hurriedly, absentmindedly wondering if they would be more hesitant to hurt him now that he had a responsibility to someone other than himself – he doubted it; they'd rather get him out of the way and raise the baby he now held to be good, he was sure of it. Not that, of course, he and Chase would ever allow such a thing.

Chase would accept her, Jack was sure, in time. He would make Chase accept her; this was their daughter, he had to! Chase did not seem to want anything to do with the baby, and yet, he had slipped and almost said something other than that he had no interest; Jack had an idea as to what he might have been going to say, before he'd stopped himself, but making assumptions around Chase Young had always been, and would continue to be, risky borderline dangerous.

That did not mean that he would not try, only that he may get hurt in the process. But then, when you chose Chase Young for your lover, what could you expect?

Jack sighed, looking down at the face of his daughter – his actual, real-life, flesh-and-blood child – with love. His expression was one of hidden tenderness until she squirmed in his arms and began whimpering – then it became shocked and terrified as he differed between staring at her in horror and frantically looking around for help. He was only lucky that one of the cats – who had been watching the Xiaolin warriors lest they try anything – understood the situation better than he did; when immortal and a servant, one tends to pick up general information on many things. The cat left and returned moments later – during which Jack worriedly bounced the baby up and down, serving to only increase her cries since he did so too vigorously due to his inexperience with infants - with a bottle of milk; things must have been prepared by the cats once they understood that their master was giving birth.

Thankful for their preparation, Jack accepted the bottle offered to him by the cat – steering well clear of the teeth and claws, for he was still unsure around these fallen warriors – with a shaky smile and tried to give it to his daughter.

She squirmed around for a few moments, as he tried unsuccessfully to feed her – he had expected this to be as simple as put it to her mouth and she would drink, simple as that. In reality, it was not so; in fact, it took him a full five minutes before her neck was balanced comfortably against his arm and she was drinking at her own pace. He grinned, an expression formed of relief and smugness, when he finally found a routine, already hoping that things would run more smoothly when he next fed her, which would, naturally, be in only a couple of hours, although Jack did not yet realise this.

For now, Jack just smiled at the baby and then his whole body froze, causing the girl to let out a shrill wail as she felt the tension of her parent's arms. He relaxed as much as he could but it was not easy, for he had just looked properly at her now open eyes, and realised with enough pride to fill the entire country, that they were his own bright, shining red.

/

Jack gulped as he pushed the heavy door open with his back, his arms occupied with holding the precious bundle securely, and entered the bedroom where his lover still resided; since giving birth to their daughter the previous day, Chase had not left this room and it was already midday. Jack had been up on and off throughout the night, tending to the baby's needs, and had risen properly – albeit reluctantly – at seven o' clock that morning.

It had, Jack decided, gone on for long enough: Chase had to see the baby.

So he now looked over at his lover; unsurprisingly, Chase was already awake and sitting up, a book in his hands and a none-too-pleased expression on his face at the disruption. It was not until Jack was standing beside the bed that Chase deigned to honour him with his acknowledgement.

"Get that out of here, Spicer."

Inwardly – and unnoticed to him, outwardly – wincing at the bitterness of Chase's tone, Jack shook his head and whispered his refusal. Only then did Chase look up at him, one eyebrow raised and his lips forming a sneer.

"I did not give you another option."

"She's your daughter, Chase, and like it or not, you're going to hold her!"

Jack instinctively took two steps back once the words had left his lips; he fully expected to feel the pain of the other's fist connecting cruelly with his face, but it never came. Jack had failed to realise that, although no complaints were voiced, Chase was still in a lot of pain from the events of the previous day and the childbirth. His lower body had a continuous dull ache, and the rest of him burned faintly, from the multitude of cuts and bruises which he had not the energy to heal properly. Jack did notice, however, that the mark on his cheek looked much better than it had before although it was not gone and had caused a bit of swelling.

Chase did not deem his lover, no matter how annoying, as being worthy of wasting his energy on – it was rather limited at present. Instead, he merely sighed and decided to change his tactics.

"Spicer, I am not going to hold it, no matter how much you whine" he said firmly. "If you want to care for it, you are free to do so, but do not try to involve me."

But just this once – for the first time in his life – Jack's own determination overcame his understandable fear of Chase's temper.

"You're already involved" he pointed out. "Chase, listen, I ..."

"Go away."

"But you're her moth... her father" Jack corrected himself, remembering how much Chase loathed the very notion that he was a 'mother'. "Just hold her. Please! Chase, if you don't like her after you've held her then that's fine, you don't have to but please, you've got to try at least once because ... because ..."

"_Enough_!" Chase snapped; Jack's babbling was beginning to create a headache, and he had quite enough pain to deal with already.

Jack, wisely, shut up. But he had not given up. And Chase had to hand it to his lover, never before had Jack defied him this way; he was truly, honestly determined.

Determined enough, it seemed, to literally thrust the baby at Chase so that she lay on his lap, squirming – awake and luckily quiet when Jack brought her in and thankfully relatively undisturbed by their arguing – and whimpering at the suddenness of the action.

A snigger escaped Jack, despite everything: Chase had never looked so baffled in all their time together.

And to his own annoyance, Chase instinctively placed a hand behind the girl's head to steady her, for her neck was dangerously limp and her head too heavy to support. It was only once he was actually touching her that he looked at her for the first time. What he saw shocked him beyond all measures.

Yesterday, all he had seen of her before he'd ordered the monks to take her away had been a screaming, bloodied infant that had not appealed to him in the slightest; he had not truly looked at her. Now, he did, and he saw so much of himself. The cheekbones, the lips, the nose, the shoulders covered by a thin black clothes that hugged her chubby frame; she was so much like him. Her skin was paler, it was true, and her eyes were bright red – inherited, no doubt, from her father, although she was not pale enough that she could be classed as an albino and her hair was her father's – and despite everything, they somehow suited her.

Her hair was wispy and would, most likely, fall out and re-grow, but Chase knew already, just from looking at its colour, that it was as dark as his own luxurious locks. He idly wondered, despite himself, if she could have a streak of green through the black in the way he himself did.

Jack, meanwhile, remained motionless, biting his lip hard to prevent himself from speaking. The way Chase was staring at her ... he could tell that things were changing in the dragon's mind, that his instincts – or hormones, from a different viewpoint – were encouraging him to accept the child that was undoubtedly his own.

And although Chase had not yet accepted the child into his heart, he accepted her into his arms, bringing her against his chest securely, feeling like he wasn't breathing, and staring at this person who had ceased to be a 'thing' and become a 'she'.

A baby girl. His own baby girl.

Possibilities danced in his mind in an evil ballet – she could be trained from the time she could walk to fight; she could instructed in the ways of evil; she could be his apprentice as well as his child; she could fulfil his now forming evil expectations.

Or she could become good and do entirely different things. She could even choose to be neutral and fight on neither side. The possibilities truly were endless.

"Well?"

Chase's chain of thoughts – thoughts of how he could ensure this child grew up to appreciate the ways of evil - were broken by the voice of Jack Spicer, and he glanced up at him.

"I will instruct her in the ways of the Heylin when she is of an age" he announced, fixing an icy glare on his lover. "Until then ..."

Jack waited but no more words came.

Chase had been going to say 'until then, she's your problem', but he found that, inexplicably and to his own irritation, he could not bring himself to say it. She was not Spicer's; she was _his_.

Neither one spoke for a few moments, during which the atmosphere was uncomfortable and the silence broken only by the periodic noises that came from the baby girl still held in Chase's embrace.

Finally, Jack could no longer take it.

"Well, can we ... y'know, name her?" he asked hopefully.

Chase sat thoughtfully for a moment before he nodded.

"Suggest what you like, but don't expect agreement" he said offhandedly, removing the child from his embrace onto a pillow where she closed her eyes contently.

Jack gulped and nodded, praying that his lover would not turn down all his ideas in favour of a dead, fifteen hundred year old name that nobody would understand.

"Well, how about Jacqueline?"

Chase snorted. "So you can shorten it to your own name? I think not."

_Damn it_, Jack thought, but he moved on swiftly.

"How about ... Alana? Or Zoe?"

Chase grimaced; no, then, Jack decided.

"Can we please have a name that everyone understands at least? Something American maybe?"

Chase sighed and pinched the bridge of his knows between his thumb and index finger; damn his lover. "We shall see, Spicer. But if you think I will name her something as simpering as either of those, then you can quit right now."

Jack sighed – he wasn't going to get his way, was he?

"Elizabeth? That's older. Or Grace ..." He stopped when he noticed the look on his lover's face, showing his clear disapproval. Jack sighed and muttered, "Cleopatra?"

Chase snorted in response.

The two brainstormed some ideas – agreeing on nothing, which was expected seeing as nearly all the suggest were from Jack and Chase approved of none of them, and the few he considered brought grimaces to his lover's face that he did not want to see every time Jack said their daughter's name – before eventually, Chase nodded.

"I have decided" he stated simply, leaving no room for argument, and Jack bit his lip, praying he'd like this name because it was evident from Chase's expression that the warlord wasn't changing his mind now.

Jack was very thankful that, when Chase effectively named their daughter, he loved the name himself.

Hazeru - So Chase has claimed their daughter but he doesn't technically love her yet ...

Hera - Hope it was okay. Please R&R.


	14. Epilogue  Love And Assumptions

Hazeru - This is the final chapter/epilogue to this story.

Hera - We hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown

Epilogue

Love And Assumptions

_Eighteen Months Later..._

An evil smirk – the perfect blend of pride, smugness and classic Heylin 'charm' – spread across the face of the warlord as he witnessed his lover win, at last, a showdown against the Xiaolin monks; to add salt to their wounds, the monk Jack Spicer had defeated was Omi, who was equally, if not more so, as proud as Chase Young himself.

Spicer's grin widened as he proudly held the new shen gong wu, the Orb Of Tornami and the Golden Tiger Claws in his arms; he turned instantaneously to his watching lover, who gave him a nod of acknowledgement before disappearing into the sky as if he were never there in the first place. Jack was, naturally, used to this by now; Chase would stick around for the actual entertainment of the showdown occasionally, but he never stayed to witness the gloating that followed any of his lover's victories, which were not as frequent as either would have liked them to be. Chase was always too eager to return home to his daughter, never entirely content to leave her in the hands of his warriors, even if they did not possess the personal ability to betray him.

Jack added his trademark – no matter what Wuya said – "I'd love to stay and gloat, but I have evil to do" before departing; not that he was going off to do evil, per say, but rather returning to the domain of evil, the lair of Chase Young and, nowadays, himself and their daughter. Ever since her birth, Jack Spicer was officially the partner slash mate of Chase Young, and everyone who knew of their existence – at least, those who knew of their existence in terms of who they really were – knew that they had an eighteen month old daughter whom they adored, and who was continuously surrounded by the ways of the Heylin. Her parents, namely her father, made sure of it – her dad was less pushy.

Following Chase's blatant refusal to be called anything which resembled in any way the name 'mother', much to the disappointment of his doting lover, the two had decided that Chase would be referred to as 'father' and Jack as 'dad', so as to ensure there would be no mix up between them.

Jack headed back to his home – it still felt incredible to be able to call it that, considering the door had once been charmed to specifically crush him whenever he came calling, although that particular charm had long been removed – with no reluctance; Chase's amazing home had more appeal than his old 'evil lair' any day of the week, especially since he no longer had the Xiaolin monks bursting through the walls in order to torment him or steal back the shen gong wu he had stolen from them earlier. Jack had to admit it: even aside from the obvious, living with Chase Young had great perks.

Once inside the citadel, Jack stored the shen gong wu in the designated area – smug that he knew this even after all this time – and then proceeded to eagerly search out his lover and daughter.

The two were, as predicted, in one of the many back rooms, which was as richly furnished as the others – with a trickling, clear waterfall, a spotless stone floor, mahogany walls and antique furniture – but which had a surprisingly bright, homey theme to it; a necessity, in Jack's world, for the mental stability of their child, which Chase had agreed to after only minimal persuasion, although he had drawn the line at evil bunnies being painted along the skirting of the ceiling despite Jack's pleads.

Chase was sitting on a grand chair – at least three hundred years old, made from firm, fine wood and with a red padded cushion – and watching his daughter with attentive eyes. The small girl was presently staring with the awe that only a child could possess at a robotic teddy bear – made, of course, by Jack for her first birthday – as she prodded various buttons on the 'toy' and watched as it moved around with stiff limbs and made bleeping noises.

Her father watched this, with the patience that the warlord possessed around her and her alone; not even Jack could ever hope for Chase to be this patient with him. The small girl had her father – not that said father would ever admit it in fifteen hundred years – wrapped around her little finger, and she knew it; for a young child, she was rather intelligent, something that Jack took credit for and that Chase took pride in.

Since her birth, things had actually improved between Chase and Jack. That didn't mean that Chase no longer had bursts of anger which threw Jack across the room – often resulting in several days of whimpering, whining and flinching – or that he had suddenly transformed into a completely understanding individual; he had not. However, he made a conscious effort to strike out at his lover less and on the whole, with a few slips over the months, he was improving. And to his credit, the immortal had never once raised his hand to his daughter, although that did not mean he had never raised his voice.

Ebony Eternity Young was a remarkable person, even at a mere eighteen months. It amazed Jack that such a tiny girl – daughter to the dragon or not – could have such power over the mighty Chase Young, to the extent that he would not even consider hitting her. And he had to admit, Chase hit him less and less often, and he privately wondered – voicing his questions aloud would not help in the slightest – if, over time, those strikes would fade into a state of oblivion.

On the outside, Chase was the same as he had ever been: evil, cruel, demeaning and occasionally unbearable. However, Jack had the privilege of seeing him as no other but he and his daughter saw him. That is, as a father.

Chase's pregnancy was not discussed any more. If Ebony should ask – and indeed she would – as she got older, they would invent a story to feed to her until she came to an age where she could withstand and digest the truth behind her birth. Until then, they were content to raise their daughter with the ways of evil and, of course, with the sort of love that seems odd to those who are not Heylin; the Xiaolin monks would never understand Chase's method of parenting – Jack's was far softer – but behind all his strict codes and harsh words, Chase genuinely loved Ebony, more than anything.

He had never imagined that, after his change of heart and his first monumental taste of that soup, he would be able to love another so completely. But then again, he had never imagined that he would have the privilege of becoming someone's father, either, and here he was with a daughter over a year old and a lover to aid in her upbringing.

Ebony was not only a daughter to Chase; she was also a pupil. She would be, as she grew and became more attentive to detail, instructed in the ways of evil. She could be loved and taught as she grew and, with time, would become a prodigy; her father would accept no less, in his own words, although Jack privately knew that, no matter what choices Ebony made in her life, she would always be special to Chase.

/

Jack took his seat next to Chase and smiled at the warlord warmly, his eyes alight with love, desire and hopefulness; he wanted praise from his lover, or at least whatever the Chase Young equivalent of blatant praise truly was. He received it: Chase pulled Jack against his shoulder, and Jack lowered his head into the crook of the warlord's neck in acceptance of this acknowledgement.

Chase did not often ignore Jack – with high pitched whining and a natural obsession with touching his idol and lover, it was difficult to do – but the albino could not get enough of his lover regardless; he missed him whenever they had to be apart, and with the threat of Hannibal Bean and Wuya ever growing, those times grew more and more frequent.

Though Jack could not complain that Chase fought them while he was left at home like a housewife; it was not like that. Okay, Jack was quite often left behind – thought this was more for his own safety than anything else, considering his inability to engage effectively in physical combat – but on these rare occasions, Ebony was not with him. Chase felt the need to leave Ebony in hiding with his warriors or, if the situation were truly desperate, with the more than able Xiaolin warriors – who fell over themselves to care for the girl, ever hopeful that she could be led way from the ways of evil and towards the tendencies of good. If the threat was Wuya alone, without Bean, he even took Ebony with him once; it had been a quick fight, and he had then spoken to his daughter about the techniques he had used in the fight as though she could understand all that he had to say.

Most of the time, though, the threat was not so great as to draw them out of their lair – Chase's interest in the shen gong wu, which had been minimal to begin with, dwindled into the depths of nothingness, leaving Jack being the only one to regularly attend showdowns. Chase preferred to instruct and care for Ebony, to work on his sorcery and, of course, to train in his favour methods of fighting.

He had, within about four months following Ebony's birth, regained his impressive body. The training required for him to do so had been great, but with his persistence and his lover's encouragement, Chase had managed it within a shorter time period than expected. Of course, was that really surprising? After all, he _was_ the great Chase Young.

There is a shrill shriek of delight from their daughter as she throws the toy across the room, its ability to entertain her lacking, and her parents grin together; she has a decent throw in her arm, for a young child. With the proper training, she will be able to throw a monk clear across the room with little effort by the time she is a teenager.

She raises herself to her feet, for she can walk, albeit a tad shakily, across the room easily enough; she can run, too, if she wants, although not for a great distance. Taking the necessary steps to reach her parents, chubby arms reach up in a plead to be picked up; her dad complies instantly, because although they will never admit it, the parents do tend to spoil her.

Chase smirks as Jack raises the girl squealing with delight high above his head, standing up in order to spin her around in a way that she adores.

"You spoil her, Jack."

"Me?" Jack snorts, for he has grown more and more confident around his lover. "You're the one that gives her everything she wants."

"Oh really? And who was it again that flew personally to Mexico City to obtain the perfect sort of material to clothe a doll that is not alive, just because he knew that Ebony happened to like the material?"

"What can I say? The girl's got taste!" Jack smirks proudly – no parent had ever looked so smug, it was indeed a new record. "Obviously, since she is the daughter of Jack Spicer, evil boy genius!"

An evil cackle fills the room, followed a girlish giggle which is a weak imitation of her parent's laugh – Ebony may have been the daughter of Chase Young and the so-called-evil-genius Jack Spicer, but she was still a child and did not have an evil laugh; she had the same cheerful chuckle that all children possess.

Chase rolled his eyes, sighing. He sincerely hoped that Ebony would not have her mother's sense of humour, for he was loathed to be around two people who found bodily functions and dull daytime television humorous. He could handle Jack, was used to him and his guilty pleasures, but he didn't want those specific qualities to be passed onto his daughter. If Ebony could have any of Jack's qualities asides from his eyes – hers were as red now as the day she was born – it would have to be his smarts; Chase himself was lacking in the technology area of ability, so it would be profitable to all if his daughter could inherit that from Jack, seeing as he hoped that she inherited agility and skills from he himself – and of course a healthy dose of the Heylin ways.

As the various fallen warriors roamed the palace in feline form, the small, odd family played together, enjoying the scarce moments when evil, threats and shen gong wu ceased to be of any importance to them and they just immersed themselves in the classic familial traditions of adoring their daughter and lavishing one another with kisses.

/

The four monks were stretching their aching limbs and re-bandaging their wounded egos, particularly the shortest monk – getting their butts kicked by Jack Spicer stung, especially when they knew that Chase Young and Wuya had both been watching.

"Jack Spicer has found much improvement" Omi remarked, massaging his temples.

The others nodded in agreement.

"I reckon it's livin' with Chase Young" Clay grumbled, folding his arms and laying his head on them. "He's gotta be teaching him somethin'."

Raimundo nodded in agreement but sighed all the same. "I'd be more worried about what he's teaching the kid" he said thoughtfully, feeling three pairs of eyes turn to him attentively. "If she turns bad..."

The sole female monk snorted and said, "I don't think there's any 'if' about it, Rai. Chase won't let her be anything else."

Raimundo and Clay nodded, and then the two of them and Kimiko turned in surprise to Omi, who was chuckling lightly. The small monk stopped and raised his head, smiling knowingly at his three friends.

"I think he will let Ebony decide for herself."

Three sets of eyes widened in surprise at Omi's statement, but he did not reply. Instead, he merely stepped inside the temple doors to get something to eat before continuing with some training.

The other three looked at each other and shrugged, not believing of the fact that Chase would actually let Ebony decide for herself whether or not she wanted to be good, evil or indifferent. They were entirely sure that she would, one day, present to them a great threat, and it was shame because – and they'd cared for her on two desperate occasions – from what they could tell, Ebony was a lovely child, considering her parentage.

But oh well. What could be done?

Little did they know, what went on behind the closed doors of Chase Young's lair, between the small family, was far from the horrors that they imagined. They imagined a loveless family in a strict regime and a poor child being brought up with abuse, which was why they had vowed to keep an eye on her.

They thought, to this day, that although Jack was true, Chase had no love in his heart for his daughter.

Oh, how wrong they were.

Hazeru - And there you have it. That's the end of Your Dream, My Nightmare.

Hera - We hope you enjoyed.

Hazeru - If anyone's wondering about the name Ebony Eternity Young, we'll explain. Firstly, we chose Young because Chase is the dominant one in the relationship and I think Jack would be proud to have his daughter share the name.

Hera - The name Ebony Eternity was chosen because of the meaning. Eternity and Ebony have connotations of 'everlasting' and 'dark strength' respectively, so it's like a tribute to Chase's immortality and the fact they're Heylin and want their daughter to be evil.

Hazeru - Also, we added the bit with the monks in the end because I think it's just like Omi to know more than he lets on, even if he doesn't know quite as much as he likes to think xD

Hera - Anyway, that's the end. Please leave a review, and thank you for reading.


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